Silent Secrets
by Kisara Strife
Summary: Arriving at yet another dilapidated city, the pack comes across a girl leading a bunch of thieves, much like Tsume once did.She offers them food and shelter. But something is amiss as Quent turns up to kill the four, only to be stopped by a new wolf...
1. Karasuke

**Author's Note;** Hiya peoples, this is my first-ever "Wolf's Rain" fic as I've only just got into it as a result of a great channel on sky (199) called Anime Network- it also plays Bleach and Cowboy Bebop and loads more. Anyways, so far I've only seen about five episodes and am tuned in at the part where Hige is running through Jaguara's freaky-clean city with Blue, Toboe has been captured, Kiba just defeated a load of guards and Tsume found all the dead and stuffed wolves…please let me know what ye think of my first attempt!!

* * *

"I'm hungry…"

"We _know_; we can hear your stomach every five steps, Hige!"

Toboe ducked as the older youth attempted to gather him into a headlock; anything to break up the monotonous rhythm of walking upon more and even more walking. Kiba and Tsume merely exchanged glances over their heads as a new scent became noticeable on the air; it was the smell of people, many…traipsing about nonchalantly. Hige immediately raised his head and grinned a pleased grin.

"Where's there's humans, there's a city…and where's there's a city; there's food!"

As the two who had just been fighting playfully made to run ahead, Tsume reached out and caught Hige by his collar, bringing his advance to an unexpected and violent halt.

"Hey, what gives?!"

The youth looked around as he rubbed his neck where the collar had restricted him, not impressed by the actions of the eldest of their pack as the imposing white-haired man stepped forward, sniffing the air as he spoke.

"Don't run ahead like that; we can't afford to be jumped."

"Oh, so we'll just crawl along and get there in the next decade, in the time being I'll just die of starvation, is it?"

Tsume shot Toboe a sharp look as Hige asked this and the pup stifled a laugh. Kiba merely shook his head, delved his hands deeper into the pockets of his jacket and continued on…senses alert and ready to pick up on any unwanted followers they may have attracted along the way.

* * *

The city was a mass of bustling bodies as the four entered the outskirts; stalls and shop-fronts stretched as far as even their acute sight could see; a maze of corners and streets that would swallow a mis-guided person in an instant. Amongst the chitter-chatter, snippets of conversations were heard floating across the breeze via hushed whispers from civilians of this truly run-down city. There were voices of mothers calling to their children to come indoors out of the darkening evening, acquaintances greeting each other across the wide street as the screeching of delighted children in the throws of play echoed round and set smiles upon the faces of the older people who watched the next, innocent generation enjoy themselves…for with this bitter weather, surely they would have a dreadful life when they too grew up.

"Thieves!"

Out of sheer reflex, Tsume spun towards the source of the voice…memories of his old life replaying instantly, yet as the shopkeeper called out in anger and countless patrolling police set after the alleged-thieves, the four wolves being masked by their illusions took a side-view seat as a group of about seven youngsters sped up the main street, arms laden with the fruits of their work.

The individual at the back, a girl, glanced over her shoulder and smirked as she saw the men losing ground, knowing her friends to be well ahead of her at this stage…but then she saw four individuals standing nearby and instantly froze; there was something about them, something not quite human and she knew exactly what it was as her green eyes locked onto the collar around one of the older male's necks…but then a force knocked her to the ground as one of her pursuers caught up with her.

"Owwww, fuck it!"

Not wasting a second as she skidded along the pavement, the teenager was on her feet, having picked up the majority of her loot and was running again, determined to get back to their base tonight; she didn't fancy being brought to Lady Jaguara's custody to be sorted out…

Reacting on instinct as the man regained his footing and made to pursue the thief-girl again, Kiba stuck a foot out, causing the riled man to hit the ground again. He didn't know why or even how, but the way she had glanced at them it seemed almost like she possibly knew what they were, but that would be impossible…still it was curiosity arousing in the very least.

* * *

"I'm _still_ hungry…"

Too tired and hungry himself to reply, Toboe merely lagged further behind, causing the older three to halt and wait up for him, numbering the umpteenth time. Dusk had fallen and moonrise was fast on the agenda as the odd owl could be heard hooting from some hidden nest amongst this poverty-stricken large town.

After Kiba's deed of tripping the man earlier, they had had to make a swift exit from the main street for reasons of being dragged into it themselves and had since kept to the back streets and alleys in an attempt to keep a low profile…resulting in the locating of no food and Hige's stomach was a constant reminder as it whined and growled for any source of nutrition.

A blur of auburn and a young woman dropped down from atop one of the high buildings, landing right in front of the group of four, causing each to jump slightly at her surprising stealth. As he took in her deep auburn, almost burgundy tresses and vivid emerald eyes, Kiba realised it was the same girl from earlier that evening…the thief. Tsume wasn't too far behind on recognising her either as he surveyed her with a suspicious glare of his golden-hued irises.

In no rush to get to the point or explain herself, this young stranger took a moment or two to study each of these lads, her eyes travelling up and down their frames, until a growl of hunger from the one with the yellow hoody made her grin slightly and raise a burgundy eyebrow in a questioning manner.

"Hmmm…you guys hungry?"

"What gives, kid?"

It was the tallest of the four, with short white hair that spoke to her, looking down the foot or so that separated their heights…the stare was returned with equal intensity as the girl jutted a thumb in Kiba's direction, indicating him.

"I saw what he did earlier; I would have been caught otherwise and we have plenty of food to spare…unless you're too proud to accept charity?"

"No, it's food; we accept!"

Tsume rolled his eyes skywards as Hige answered on behalf of everyone, gaining a grin from Toboe as he did so; Kiba being himself merely remained quite indifferent to the entire thing even though it was his actions that were warranting this girl to find and repay them.

As the girl walked up the alley, Hige being the first to follow her as his two key reasons were present; there was food involved and she was an attractive girl! Toboe, being more attached to Hige than the older duo was the next to catch up with the already-departing young woman. As he eyed them walking towards the end of the street, Tsume shrugged his shoulders and began walking slowly, aware that Kiba was matching him step-for-step.

"There's something about her…"

"She knows what we are…I'm sure."

Kiba said this as Hige commenced his initiating of flirting, gaining exasperated comments from Toboe as he did so. Ignoring the runt, Hige rested his hands atop his head and walked in a rather lazy style, flashing a handsome smirk as he did so, eying this girl as she engaged in conversation with him.

"So what's your name?"

A moment of silence as she idly fidgeted with her necklace; a golden chain with a small, simple and tarnished oval locket resting against her chest…the letters "_R_._Y_." engraved quite elegantly on the front, so he assumed that her name began with an 'R'…as would seem suggested by the locket.

"My name's Karusuke Yaiden."

**a/n- did u like this chapter? Remember it's my first Wolf's Rain fic and plees give me some pointers ppls!! BTW- Karusuke is pronounced the Japanese way (Kor-us-kay) C yas, XxxxxxX**


	2. Pup

**Author's Note;** Thanks to everyone who's reviewed; it means the world to me and thanks for the pointer aswell!! C yas!! XxxxxxxX

* * *

"Who the hell are they?"

"They're with me, kay guys?"

As a couple of her comrades made to object, Karusuke stepped in front of Hige and looked up the couple of inches to the young man at the fore, not being a bit intimidated by his imposing frame.

"Listen up; if not for them, I'd be on my way to Jaguara's Keep and you'd be locked up behind bears, so give it a rest and downsize the ego pretty rapidly! Besides, we've got plenty to go round."

On that last authoritative note, the tall youth bit his tongue and turned away, grumbling beneath his breath as he walked away from their young leader, who had arrived in the city about five years ago…fast becoming known throughout the streets for her stealth in robberies.

"Sorry bout them…the troops have been pretty strict on gangs lately and we've already had a couple of snitches dealt with…"

The tallest, with his cropped white hair and hint of a ponytail at the back, nodded his head in what looked to be an understanding fashion, almost like he knew what she meant.

"You smell funny-"

"Tarashi!"

The girl looked down to where the small child was looking up at the new arrivals, her nose crinkled as she gazed at the one with the collar round his neck, with an embarrassed smile, the teenager grabbed the little girl and covered her mouth with her hand, dragging the child, maybe six or seven, backwards.

"Sorry bout her, look make your own way around; my guys'll take care of you and there's beds and blankets in the back if you're staying; other than that you can eat your fill and be on your way if you want to."

"But, Karusuke, they smell like dogs-"

"Tarashi, _shhh_!"

The little girl remained adamant about the canine scent as the seeming-leader of their gang dragged her away by the collar of her jumper, leaving Hige to laugh lightly and commend the kid's nose.

* * *

"Ummm… Kiba?"

"You cannot _still_ be hungry…"

It was Tsume's exasperated voice that answered Hige later that night as they walked back through the streets, thinking it better to keep moving than to be rooted in the base with that girl, though it was good of her to offer their resources to them…but she was curious though; seemingly knowing what they were, yet never being open about it and keeping to herself much of the time; then and again grabbing that little girl as she passed another comment of how they smelled of dogs- for a human, the little one had a good nose.

"Well yeah; I'm always hungry, but that's not the point…"

Hige stopped walking, with Toboe accidentally walking into him as the older lad sniffed the air poignantly and looked behind him worriedly as the other three gave him inquisitive looks…for a second the most gifted scent-wise of the small pack couldn't quite pin the scent that had caused him to halt their walking…and then it clicked as a noise was heard at the other end of the street, causing Kiba to spin and lock gazes with the only one who dared to prey upon them.

"Crap!"

"Move it runt!"

"I was getting ready to!"

But as they made to escape, Blue appeared and let out a low and admirable growl as the hairs on the tip of her back stood on end whilst she eyed these four with a hateful cerulean gaze, Quent sliding back the bolt of his rifle and allowing a bullet to enter the firing chamber as he aimed for the youngest of the four human-looking males that stood before him.

Then there was the sudden noise of running footsteps…no; of running _paws_, then nothing as the owner of the four paws leapt forward and savagely sunk its teeth into the old man's arm, earning a yelp of pain and mostly surprise as the gun clattered to the ground and Blue spun on this new assailant, who detached itself from Quent's arm and made its way to stand in front of the stunned quartet, indicating its willingness to protect them…even as Blue sank her teeth in this new wolf's front right shoulder.

"Run you idiots!"

The female voice emanated from their newest canine ally as it managed to snap at Blue's snout, causing the darkly hued dog to yelp with shock. Without a second telling, they did as told; Hige leading the way as Tsume pushed Toboe in front of him and Kiba bringing up the rear, glancing over his shoulder to get one more look at this new she-wolf, with her light blond coat and sharp light blue, almost transparently- hued irises.

"Where to?"

As Tsume barked this gruff inquiry back at their so-called leader, Kiba returned his attention to escaping and came up with the best place he could on such short notice.

"The base…where Karasuke is!"

* * *

In comparison to when they'd left the thief base, it was pretty hectic when they returned, with members of the gang walking about and Karusuke was found to be sitting on a chair, a few of the younger and some of the older members watching her as she cleaned out a savage wound on her right bicep, cringing slightly as she did so.

"That's a bad bite, y'know…"

Hige smirked slightly, yet frowned as he realized that the bloody bite wound was emitting a slight hint of Blue's scent, and then he shot this curious look to Kiba, who was also eying the wound with what appeared to be sight trepidation. The girl looked up at them, flashed half a smirk and then continued on with the cleaning of the bite, not at all pushed to give these four an excuse.

Having not made the same connection as the other three, Toboe studied the wound before he permitted himself to speak to the girl about it.

"What kind of dog was it?"

Not realizing what she was saying and cursing beneath her breath as she dabbed the damp cloth over the bite, Karusuke half-laughed as she didn't even look up to pass the comment.

"You're such a pup…"

_Crap_! That was the instant message that reverberated throughout her mind as she suddenly heard her own voice saying it; only those four were left standing there, her people having moved off again. The teenager's head snapped upwards to see the satisfied smirk upon the lips of the one called Tsume, who was first to speak.

"Pup?"

"Would you believe I meant to say kid?"

Taking the hint, Kiba half-sat on an old storage crate, hands inside his pocket as he added his own part to this now-interesting conversation.

"Cheza…"

The recognition was obvious to see glimmering in her emerald irises as the name was spoken softly, yet loudly enough to strike a chord within her…and the lads didn't miss out on the hesitation she took to draw a sharp intake of breath.

**a/n- did u like this chapter? Plees let me know what ye thinks!! Cyas!! XxxxxxxxxxxX**


	3. Capture

**Author's Note;** Thanks for the reviews peoples; it means the world to me that you like it!! C yas!! XxxxxxxxxxxX

* * *

An amused smirk was seen to be adorning the lips of the white-haired male with the noticeable scar upon his chest as his golden-hued irises wavered upon this shocked girl at the sound of the Flower Maiden's name.

Karasuke mentally kicked herself as she realized how she'd just landed herself in it by complete and utter accident; her plan had been a simple one from the moment she'd seen them halt her pursuers; thank the four and let them be on their way before they discovered her secret…for she had known their's all along…and now she couldn't get that name- Cheza- out of her head for some odd reason as the vision of white blossoming flowers obscured her vision and she heard a voice ringing within her mind.

"_This one is happy to have found you_…"

But then she snapped back to reality and flashed a smirk as the four sets of eyes remained trained upon her…the girl stood and wiped the last of the blood from the wound Blue had dealt her, then spoke in a low voice so as not to have any of her gang overhear her conversation with the quartet of human-looking individuals.

"So…now you know, whatcha gonna do about it?"

The youth in the jeans and open jacket, with his white t-shirt merely shrugged his shoulders in a nonchalant manner as he took his hands from the pockets of the jacket and inclined his hazel head to each of his three comrades in turn.

"Well…why don't you come with us; we're heading for Paradise."

"Paradise? Tch! That's an old story pups are told at night-time…there's no truth behind it-"

A sudden noise made the five of them look up, as it did with the rest of the people within this warehouse that served as the base for the band of thieves. The young girl from earlier came running in, glancing over her shoulder as she skidded to a stop in front the lad who had earlier objected to the presence of the four new males.

"Kirin! They're coming; Jaguara's troops found our base!"

The lad immediately looked to their leader as the many members of the gang let out a collective gasp, fear rising within their hearts; they were the last of the gangs…everyone else had been taken in and were now held in the prison of this city.

"Karusuke!"

The girl was already aware of the sound of approaching footsteps as her acute hearing was much more advanced than that of her human comrades…she turned to the four lads that had only arrived today and who now knew the best-kept secret she'd ever had.

"Go find your Paradise, but I've got bigger problems right now…everyone get out of here _now_!"

The reaction to her loud shout was instantaneous as the many thieves all found their quickest way out before the troops arrived…the four unbeknownst wolves being swept along by them as the fourth of their dying canine race let her orders fall fast and heavy as she made sure every single person was clear and into the back passage that led to a small alley outside.

"Hey guys…I think it's time to pack in the stealing, huh? Don't bother rendezvousing here again; we're through. Find a nice place to live and get a goddamn job for yourself- Tarashi!"

The little girl had been overlooked in the hectic emptying of the base and now stood, quite lost in the vast expanse of the warehouse…causing the teenage leader to run forward and grab her, thrusting her into the arms of the lad named Kirin as she heard the metal armour chinking against itself slightly…Jaguara's troops had breached into the base…so she slammed shut the door leading outside and locked her people out, willing to be the sort of leader that would protect its subordinates.

"Where's the rest, girl?"

"Have no idea what you mean…_ahhh_!"

She dropped to her knees as the butt of a rifle was slammed into her stomach in retaliation to her smart comment, and then the men lowered their visors…but only a human form was seen through the wolf-scanner, odd; they'd been given information to suggest she was of wolf blood…but nonetheless; Lady Jaguara had ordered the capture of Karusuke Yaiden.

* * *

"Owww…you boot-licking cunt!"

The teenage girl turned on her heel as she was shoved into the cell and immediately tried to ram through the resilient iron bars…only to receive a painful jarring down the length of her right shoulder, making the bite wound on her bicep throb all the more agonizingly in response.

"That won't work, kid…"

She knew that male voice as it spoke in a tone that echoed despair…and she instantly knew the man with his clear light grass-coloured eyes and cropped blond hair…though he looked a hell of a lot worse for wear as her emerald irises set upon him in the cell across from her, slumped hopelessly against the wall.

"Hubb…Hubb Lebowski?"

The pale green-hued eyes flashed with recognition as he realized who owned the voice and, out of sheer disbelief, looked across the cell to the other side of the block, seeing the teenager to be staring at him curiously…it _was_ her.

"Karusuke?"

"What the hell happened you? You were the biggest Noble-pet going round…"

The man chuckled lightly as the girl said this in an amazed voice…he wasn't quite sure how he'd managed to get himself into this either, but here he was locked up; once you became a liability you were cut like any other person…though he knew he needed to find Chere and make sure she was okay.

"The Nobles don't take well to someone being found with The Book of The Moon…and kidnapping their Flower Maiden either…"

He glanced back over at the teenager as he said this; Hubb had known Karusuke for near-on five years now as he'd been the one called in to try and track her down after committing her countless robberies and somehow she always evaded his troops…and then she'd been caught a couple of times and had even managed to break out of custody and disappear into the night…not once had they managed to retain her for any longer than a couple of hours for she would be gone again the following morning and he had to admit, although his objective had been to capture her, the then-detective had come to respect the wiry teen for her unusual aptitude for escapes…he'd just never imagined the seventeen-year-old _would_ be caught and retained.

"Flower Maiden…is she here, is Cheza here?"

He nodded at her question and then his eyes widened as she stood beneath the barred window through which moonlight streamed down…illuminating the vicious bite wound on her right bicep…but what was more odd was the way the skin was knitting back together and healing as the pale white-blue light shone down brightly. The girl noticed him eying her affliction and flashed a smirk his way.

"I've got a few secrets…"

"See, I told you I smelled her!"

"And that's why you had to stop off at the kitchen on the way, was it?"

Hige frowned as Kiba asked this, with Toboe appearing and running up to the door of her cell…Karusuke looked at the four wolves she had told to get lost earlier; what the hell were they doing here? Tsume was the one to answer her dumbfounded look as he pressed the button on the wall that allowed for her cell door to slide open.

"It was the pup's idea and I can't say I disagree; we need to stick together."

She broke out into a bright smile as she eyed these four…maybe she had judged them too fast; they were here, trying to get her out and they barely knew the first thing about her…perhaps Paradise wasn't an old pup's tale…and then a thought occurred and she spun on the lad named Kiba.

"The Flower Maiden's here…Cheza's here!"

**a/n- did u like this chappie? Let me know what ye thinks!! XxxxxxxxxxxxxX**


	4. Different

**Author's Note;** I'm really sorry about the wait, but my Christmas exams only finished today and as I'm 16 we have 5th year tests and they were fair hard!! Even after my studying I only scraped by on a few!! (Hehehehe, flew past my Englsh one though...:-)

* * *

"This way!" 

As everyone made to follow Hige, who had sniffed at the air, trying to locate the obvious scent, Karusuke pulled up short and pressed the button on the wall of the man's cell, allowing for the door to slide open and Hubb to be freed of his imprisonment.

"If you're in here, then who's gonna catch me next time, huh?"

It was all the ex-detective could do but to half-laugh as the girl ran off in the same direction the four boys had just disappeared…_Yaiden_…why was that name suddenly ringing the bells of recognition within his memory?

Corridors upon corridors…why did all the Keeps of the Nobles have to be so labyrinthine all the time? If it wasn't for the faint scent of what she could only assume were Lunar Flowers the teenage-looking girl would have easily become lost in no time at all, but she made it to the hall in time to see there were more present than initially thought, but no Lady Jaguara in sight.

"Kiba, watch out!"

That was Tsume's bark of a voice that alerted the youth to move back as a gun was pointed his way and Blue strained at her collar…there was someone standing behind him though; a young girl with light pink hair and a pale complexion and yet something deep inside told her who this was; Cheza…the Flower Maiden. And suddenly, the gun was heard cocking as Blue rushed forwards, her bite aimed at the youth standing before the girl and so she did the only thing that made sense and moved like lightening.

"Stop it, Blue!"

The pretty black dog stopped itself short as this blond wolf, with its almost translucent cerulean eyes stood dead centre in front of the lad with the young girl…had it just said her name? As this scene continued, a movement behind caught the attention of the hall as the girl moved out from behind the older lad and kneeled down before the black dog, smiling quite serenely as she did so, before speaking in a sweet and peaceful voice, whilst running a hand through the dog's fur.

"This one knows what you are…"

"Grab that wolf! I knew it; the scanner must be broken!"

As the half-dozen troops made to advance on her, Karusuke suddenly became aware of two individuals standing before her; a white wolf with striking golden irises and a steel grey wolf with a noticeable scar upon his chest. The fore of these two turned his head slightly as a deep growl emanated from the other, aimed at the armoured troops who seemed so keen to capture the newest member of their pack.

"Take Cheza and go; we'll follow!"

Taking on her human form, Karusuke nodded her head and grabbed the young girl's hand, feeling a slight tingling as she did so…and then ran for the door, pulling the seemingly-child after her…only to be stopped as they almost ran into the newest element of the fray.

"Return to me, Cheza."

Tall, imposing and impossibly undertone voice…why the hell did Darcia the Third seem so familiar to her? The ex-thief had no time to ponder this as she instinctively ducked and skidded beneath his tall frame and expertly managed to regain her footing on the other side; years of evading police forces _did_ have its perks.

"C'mon Cheza…we need to get you away from here!"

She didn't know why, but it seemed, almost _felt_ right to be taking this girl; she belonged with them, she belonged with wolves…just like they belonged with her. For years now she had lived on the streets of this old and stinking town, making a living by stealing from those who seemed to have more than her and she'd always assumed that was all her life would amount to…all she was expecting it to amount to and everything had felt totally in place…until today; when her hand had made contact with Cheza's skin, that was the instant she noticed a change; there was more to life than scavenging and living off others…what if they could open Paradise? She'd always just assumed it was an old tale you told to pups as the night fell, but didn't fairytales, always have truth rooted somewhere within them?

* * *

"Here, put this on…" 

Karusuke deftly unzipped her hoody and draped it round this girl's frame as they walked through the streets, subconsciously making their way to the edge of the city…but where were the other four? As Cheza slipped her arms through the lengthy sleeves and smiled happily, the teenager couldn't help but to reflect painfully upon him…Ruse…he'd only been a child when Kyrios had been burnt down…he'd died…she'd _let_ her mother and little brother die…and now her father-

"This one can tell you are different…this one wonders why you are so guilty…this one feels guilty also."

As she heard the impossibly sweet voice, Karasuke glanced down slightly for Cheza was tall enough for her seemingly thirteen years, and for the first time ever she felt as though she could speak to someone…she'd never let anyone get close before; her human friends hadn't know the real her at all, they'd just seen a master thief who could be a good leader and an ace at evading police forces…

"I've done bad things…and caused even worse ones."

Those striking, almost crimson eyes looked to her, but Karasuke could tell they couldn't see her…and yet they sensed her as the younger girl gave a wanly smirk.

"This one knows you are different."

a/n- did u like this chapter? Again, I'm so sorry bout the wait!!

**And in case I don't update before Tuesday; _Happy Christmas_ to everyone and keep safe over the holidays!!**


	5. A Crumpled Memory

**Author's Note; **Sorry about the mega-wait on this one ppls- have been majorly busy over the last few weeks and everytime I opened this document I just couldn't type, so I'm at home from school sick and I just decided to type and this is what I got, so let me know what ye thinks ppls!! Kas- out:-) XxxxxxxxxxxX

* * *

"So who's who?"

"The runt is Toboe, the bad-tempered guy is Tsume, the silent leader-type is Kiba…and me, the perfect guy; I'm Hige."

As she asked this, Karasuke dragged her feet lightly; they'd been walking in this snow for over and hour now and the silence was killing her; it was amusing though as Tsume leaned forward and cuffed Hige lightly round the head, getting his own statement in,

"Tch! More like Porky!"

"This one remembers you all very well…this one is happy to be back with you."

Cheza's voice floated back from where she was a few steps ahead, absently skipping along as Kiba kept a watchful eye on her; he seemed to be that bit more protective of the girl than the others, and yet it seemed to be a slightly endearing quality to him; almost brotherly in a way…and that was when the guilt stabbed yet again; _Ruse_…to overcome the unnerving silence, Karasuke found herself asking yet another question as her feet dragged slightly in the snow, leaving noticeable tracks behind her as she did so.

"Any idea, which way Paradise is?"

It was the one called Kiba to answer her in an almost nostalgic voice- despite he being the one who invited her to join the small pack, Kiba hadn't really said all that much to her; he'd been pretty much preoccupied with keeping his greenish eyes locked onto Cheza's elated form, almost as though he feared her to be taken from them again.

"Not a clue, but I know it's there and so does Cheza…"

* * *

What did he want with her? Why was the man keeping her here in his Keep when her skills were obviously not of need, but she didn't complain- unknowing as to what his reaction would be if she did so…instead, Cher Degré occupied herself with taking in her surroundings in the hopes that if she remained so subdued and compliant that Darcia would lose interest in keeping her hostage and yet her eyes scanned along one of the high shelves in this otherwise stark chamber that rang with lonliness…along the shelf was a line-up of slightly yellowed photgraphs, only one of which wasn't framed and yet it was crumpled and creased as though it had been held in the hands of someone repeatedly, or maybe just been regarded as a sad mmory that could never be recalled.

With curiosity gaining the better of her, Cher flicked back some of her stray strands of blond hair and reached forward, taking down this unique photograph, holding it in her slender fingers as her blue eyes scanned over the picture ; it was of a small girl, maybe about two or three, smiling as she sat on the lap of a young woman with tresses of blond hair and enthralling ameythst eyes, an equally young man was by her side with what looked to be deep blue coloured hair and striking sapphire eyes…the faces on both of the young individuals lightened with what she could only surmise was parental pride as the little girl smiled happily…and yet the small toddler was a sight that rang faint bells of recognition in the back of her mind- somwehere amidst her vague memories, Cher had seen the deep burgundy-hued hair and vivid emerald eyes somewhere before although it eluded her mind as to where. Turning the photograph over, the attractive young scientist picked up on the elegant handwriting across the back, reading it in silence, her whole attention now drawn completely onto this picture.

"_Lord Darcia_, _Lady Hamona and Miss Karasuke_."

"You have made yourself at home, I see…"

At the sound of his telltale undertone voice, Cher started with fright and dropped the picture by accident, it giving a barely audible flutter as it seemed to float down to the cold tiled floor below, freezing as her blue eyes darted from him to the yellowed picture, a small nonchalant smirk enlightening the face of Lord Darcia the Third as his one visible eye also directed itself down to the picture, instantly recognising it and knowing what was depicted within the frozen moment of time it had captured forever…a whole fourteen years ago it'd been snapped, the little girl being only a mere three years of age at the time…with a soft and conscience-heavy sigh, the man bent down and picked up the small photograph, his right hand seemingly sitting into the creases and crumples, indicating they were his doing via holding this very image long and hard whilst letting his memories have rein over his mind, as they did every time he found himself wondering about the little girl- more so today than any other time and maybe it had to do with the fact of the thief-girl from Jaguara's Keep…

"I see you've discovered my most guarded secret, Mrs. Lebowski…"

"It's Ms. Degré actually…she looks like her mother…"

Although she had been fishing for more information, Cher actually did mean her comment in grudging sincerity- the little toddler had the same shaped face as the blond lady and her smile also mirrored that of whom Cher only suspected was her mother. Another sigh was heard as the tall man reached his right hand upwards and replaced the treasured picture upon its sanctioned wooden shelf and held his lingering gaze over it for maybe a moment too long before speaking to that blond woman once again in a somewhat distracted and distant voice.

"Do you have children, Ms. Degré?"

When she shook her head, he smiled what she could only label as a knowing smile, and then turned for the door, speaking more to himself than to the young scientist whom he just left in a bewildered state.

"Neither do I…not anymore…"

**a/n- hehehehe; the plot thickens again around our Karasuke, hmmm? What ye think huns??XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX**


	6. A Murdered Memory

**Author's Note;** Hi huns- have the plot totally worked out on this now so things are gonna get a bit more confusing before they make sense, lol!! So please stick by and thanks so much for those who've been reviewing the story- it means the world to me huns!! Kas, :-) XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

* * *

The uncanny timing had initiated about a week ago at this stage…the first time it had happened, it had been so fast that none of the four young males had noticed, or so she had hoped as the teenage girl hastily removed the pained cringe from her face as Kiba, Hige and Toboe rushed forward to check on Cheza; the seemingly thirteen-year-old having stumbled forward whilst idly skipping ahead of them a she normally did, her unseeing crimson eyes becoming her downfall…the child had fallen forward and just about managed to catch herself, though her right knee had served in taking the brunt of the fall and had sustained a nasty cut due to the undulating ground surface and a few badly-placed rocks…but at the exact same instant that Cheza's knee had collided with the ground, Karasuke had almost doubled over as she felt a sharp and rather unexpected pain shoot from her own right knee, the blood that then began to seep through the fabric of her light faded blue jeans only stood to testament that she had cut herself, but the seventeen-year-old hadn't stumbled in all their journey and if so, how come the pain had only arrived when the Flower Maiden had struck the ground like that?

"You're hurting again?"

It was more of a statement than a comment and she knew that gruff voice instantly, having become accustomed to it in the week or so since she had been inducted into this little makeshift pack…maybe she should have stayed with the humans after all- she was as much human as she was wolf, but that damned pride wouldn't allow such a thing.

"Leave me alone, Tsume…"

"Why, because I'm right? Y'know I saw it the first time…it happened about a week ago when she fell, and every time since-"

"Piss off; I never needed anyone looking out for me-"

"No; you never _wanted_ anyone looking out for you, but that changed when you decided to come with us; you may have been a leader back in that city, but you're not one here, Karasuke, you're a member of a pack and packs look out for their members; deal with it, girl."

As the lanky man turned and walked to the other side of the small shack they were currently using as tonight's shelter, the teen folded her arms across her bust and heaved what even she knew as a childish huff, cheeks burning as she suddenly felt like a small girl again with Pops leaning down and telling her right from wrong, and then patting her head lightly as he flashed her a reassuring, paternal smile…and the now teenager panged for that smile once more, knowing she would most likely never see it again, not with him hunting th-

The noise of running high-heeled boots caused the group of five wolves and the pink-haired girl to glance up, automatically jumping to their guard and standing to the fore of Cheza as the running steps grew closer and closer, moving at a frantic pace…and then she rounded the corner and burst into their pilfered shelter, bringing with her a following group of three angry men, wielding pipes and chains.

Despite her Latino appearance and dark hair, the vivid blue eyes were ones that the newest addition to the pack immediately recognised as she found herself standing and staring at this new person in her thigh-high boots and tied trench coat.

"Ooooh, look another two girls…that could work to our advantage…"

"Karasuke, take Cheza and get out of here; we'll catch up."

Without even a second thought, the young woman did as Kiba instructed and caught Cheza round the wrist, pulling the child up onto her hip as though once used to doing such…almost as though on instinct she also grabbed a hold to arm of this new female and pulled her with them aswell.

"C'mon Blue!"

The three females managed to make it out the back of the dwelling whilst the boys did as males tended and dived into the fight headlong, testosterone having been on high for a while and a fight was just what they needed to vent some energy.

* * *

"Wasn't expecting to see you here…"

The older man raised his grizzled head at the sound of this and set his gaze upon the young blond with light green eyes, remembering him from that city of about three months ago when he had attempted to kill that white wolf. As Quent continued his gruff silence, Hubb merely took it as a poignant time to explain his reckoning as to why he hadn't been contemplating on the ex-Sheriff being in the pub.

"You're dog wasn't tied up outside…did she escape or something?"

"That mongrel never belonged to me."

The icy bite was more than obvious in his voice and thus caused the blond to order a drink and sit in the uneasy silence that had since been caused…it was better than being out in that driving snow for sure, but he wasn't sure which- outside or here- had the lowest temperature…

It was only as the once detective lowered his gaze to his jacket pocket in order to extract his wallet and pay for another round of drinks that he spotted the small item on the ground and kept staring at it as a familiar face smirked back at him, albeit only as a mere child whilst she stood with a smaller boy. After an uncounted number of seconds, Quent also flicked his gaze to follow Hubb's and noticed he'd dropped the locket. With a slight groan of effort from his weary body, the aging man bent low and picked up the golden trinket, eyes looking at the two pictured children as he sat back down and heaved a heavy…almost _conscience_ heavy sigh…then spoke, though it was evident that the man had immediately sobered-up.

"Ruse was only seven when he died…it was Blue who found the girl. Went to look for that pup one day after she wandered off, nosing about the woods around Kyrios and when I found her, here was the most beautiful little girl you ever seen in your life…my and my wife couldn't have anymore kids and the little one couldn't remember anything except her name, so we adopted her as our own…and that's why I hunt, because all of my family were killed that night our village was burned down."

For a second or two, Hubb suddenly knew what it was like to be Quent Yaiden- imagine to be the only survivor of a massacred village and spend the rest of your days hunting a dying race for the over-rated prospect of twisted revenge.

"Did you find your wife, boy?"

The gruff tone was back as the older male knocked back a small shot and wiped his mouth, all sentimentality having passed by in an intermittent heartbeat and the gruff, bereaved and tragically lonely hunter was back in the place of the once gentle father.

"I…ehhh, yes, but we were split up again- I'm actually heading off now."

"I'll help you- I have nothing else worth doing…Karasuke always told me to help others…"

Hubb had smiled upon hearing the first part of that sentence, glad for the company on the road, as he and the older man had forged an unusual type of friendship over the last number of weeks…and yet as the now-solitary man mentioned the name of the girl whilst staring down at the pictures inside the locket with a lamenting smile, Hubb felt his feet freeze and refuse to move, mind racing as he received flashbacks from the last number of years of capturing that girl and attempting to hold her in custody…of all her robberies…that night in Jaguara's keep- _Yaiden_- that's why the name had seemed so familiar to him! Was Karasuke actually Quent's daughter?

**A/n- Told you it'd get confusing huns, lol!! Anyways, please let me know what you think of this chapter hun!! Kas, :-) XxxxxxxxxxxxxxX**


	7. Understanding

**Author's Note;** I'm sorry about the wait with this update- I lost the suff I'd written. but I found it today and now that I'm on summer holidays, I think I'll be updating a bit quicker, lol!! I want to say thanks to everyone who's kept this fic going with their reviews; thanks everyone, it really does mean the world to me!!

* * *

"I don't…_can_'_t_ believe it's actually you…You were that blond wolf at the last city, weren't you?…Karasuke?"

Upon hearing this, the seventeen year old looked back from where she had just stolen a glance around the corner of an old building. Still breathing a little heavy due to having run a bit, the young woman nodded her burgundy tresses, knowing exactly who this new person was, despite her tanned skin and dark hair- her forever cerulean eyes were truly unmistakable, even in human form.

"Long time no see, Blue…"

"You recognize me?"

The shock in her soft voice was obvious and caused the teenager to smirk slightly at the subsequent dubious look upon the older female's face but it had been years since they'd last seen each other, albeit during calmer times and a more pleasant setting. With a nod of her head and a slight smile, Karasuke answered.

"I always knew you were part wolf…is pops with you?"

The awkwardness with which she pronounced the word "pops" was all too much testament that she hadn't planned on asking the question- it had just more or less been blurted out before even occurring to her.

"He…he disowned me when he found out I had wolf-blood. Karasuke…I thought you died when Kyrios…"

Blue trailed off as the young woman she could well-remember as a small child shook her burgundy tresses whilst sitting down on the cracked remnants of what used to be a low wall. The seventeen-year-old sighed heavily as her eyes seemed to become unfocused…when she spoke, her young voice was unbelievably heavy with guilt beyond her years, illustrating just how much of a puzzle her mind was to even herself as she squinted, desperately trying to sort out the shards and fragments of memories that'd been floating about in her mind for years now.

"I tried to go back for Ruse, but the heat- it burned…I got to the house, but Mama pushed me away and told me to find Pops…she went back into the house to get Ruse and then the roof came down…they screamed so loud…and I…I can't remember anything after that- but Mama gave me this when she pushed me away."

Karasuke reached under her top and pulled out the now life-battered and tarnished gold locket, with the initials "_R_._Y_." engraved elegantly into its simple surface. Rasika Yaiden had been the only mother she'd ever known- a modest woman with hazel hair and overall, plain in looks. She was nothing amazingly beautiful, and yet she had raised the small girl as her own and never once even thought of the child as anything else than her own daughter.

"You should let Pops know you're alive…"

These words, spoken by Blue, were successful in snapping the teenager back to reality…trawling her back out of her remorseful memories. With her striking emerald irises alight with stern stubbornness, the foundling shook her head defiantly.

"No way! You've been with him- you know he hunts us!"

"But he doesn't know you're-"

"A wolf? Exactly- he doesn't know, Blue…he never knew. I can jut imagine the reunion conversation; Hi Pops, I'm alive and guess what? I'm a wolf, yeah the same as the ones you've been trying to kill. You don't shoot and I won't bite, how about it, huh- no hard feelings?…I don't think so…"

The cold sarcasm was heavy in the last part of the mock statement as the girl remained adamant about hiding from her father…what else could she do? Maybe it would be better if he never knew…he'd get over her dying but to tell him that she'd been the wolf to bite him…that she'd attacked him?

"You're the old dude's daughter?"

At the sound of naïve voice she immediately recognised as Toboe's, Karasuke spun around to see the four lads to be standing and looking at her with a renewed interest; a couple of new scrapes and the odd bruise or two told of their little brawl with the three men. The four just smirked as they looked at her; life hadn't been even a small bit boring since she'd joined the pack- there was always something new to learn about her and the puzzle of Karasuke just seemed to become more and more intriguing as the days passed. Tsume flashed a smug smile as he spoke in an amused voice.

"So…if you're a wolf, is he?"

"I'm not his real daughter- I'm adopted!"

At the sound of the cold statement, Blue felt her loyalty blowing back into life as she purposefully stood to her feet and walked forward, stopping as she pulled even with her master's little gilr who was once smaller than her, yet now met her; equal in height…illustrating just how much they both had changed since their lives in Kyrios.

"Real or not, it never mattered to him…Pops think he's lost his whole family. He treated you like a daughter, Karasuke- at least have the heart to treat him like a father and tell him you're alive."

The Latino-looking woman then placed her hands deep within the pockets of her tied trench coat and, having said her piece, walked on with her head held high; straight through the four dubious young males as Cheza hummed absently to herself; the child had been preoccupied since the every beginning of the conversation between Blue and Karasuke.

A single tear rolled slowly down the seventeen-year-old's cheek as she suddenly felt overwhelmingly disgusted with herself…but how was she supposed to tell a man who had loved her as his own that his adorable, innocent little girl was one of the race he so relentlessly despised?

As he heard the clicking sound, followed by a metallic sliding, Hige acted fast and moved sideways, pulling the new female with him, just as a bullet whizzed past and ricocheted off of a wall, with new people approaching from around the corners, obviously having been biding their time.

Panic ensued as the armour rang bells of memory…Jaguara seemed adamant in reclaiming Cheza…how could they have found them here? They'd sidetracked and travelled in as abstract a pattern as they could and her troops still managed to find them…it was almost like they were being tracked, but that was impossible…

Evading the bullets was easy enough in her true form, but the thing Karasuke hadn't been counting on came as she saw one of the guards holding a cloth over Cheza's mouth…the girl's eyes dimming as the chloroform took effect.

"Kiba!"

The white wolf was already on his way to the Flower Maiden when she called to him… troop was soon cut down to size…but the blond wolf of the back, with almost transparent eyes seemed to waver as she felt an unbeatable tiredness take hold of her….and then blackness…just the same as Cheza; the only thing she saw was the white blossoming flower and the innocent voice.

"This one now understands…this one has hurt you…this one is sorry you are the key…"

**A/n- Well, let me know what you thought, please!! XxxxxxxxxxxxxX**


	8. Realizing & Crossing

**Author's Note;** Hey huns, sorry about the wait (you guys must be sick of me saying that by now, lol) but here's the eigth chapter and really hope you enjoy it; some things start to reveal themselves here...so I hope you like the read!! XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX

* * *

Movement, rhythmical movement that seemed to hush her towards consciousness ever so slightly as the bitter wind nipped at the skin of her exposed midriff, where her top had ridden upwards ever so slightly. There were arms around her; one placed just below her shoulders, supporting her back and the other hand was beneath her knees, holding her weight.

"Mmmm…"

Her head throbbed as she stirred slightly and Karasuke could see white lights popping in front of her eyes as she cracked them open to the dreary light of an early morning, swathed in the light fall of snow that had become the norm of this deteriorating world. She could just about make out a white t-shirt and tattered dark jacket worn by the person whom was holding her. The description was uncanny and all the seventeen-year-old could wonder was why he was holding her instead of Cheza…but then a strong gust of icy wind bit at her and she involuntarily gasped slightly, drawing attention to the fact that she was now awake.

"You okay?"

Kiba stopped walking, his green irises now trained on her fluttering eyelids as the teenager opened them fully, now totally conscious and completely lost as to what was going on- where were the other three boys? As her mind silently asked this, another person came to the fore of her thoughts, causing her to blurt out the question.

"Where's Blue?"

"Karasuke, are you able to walk?"

As she nodded her head, Kiba lowered the arm he had supporting the girl's legs until she was standing, only when he was sure she had her balance did the young man remove his arm from around her shoulders and drew in a breath before speaking.

"Jaguara's troops jumped us…they took everyone, including Blue…and Cheza-"

"Jaguara has Cheza? Why didn't you run with her?!"

"Because she told me to save you- that you were the key! What the hell is the _key_?"

As she made to answer him and tell him that she had absolutely no idea what the 'key' was, the teenager felt a sharp pain in her leg and abruptly keeled to her right as it gave way under her, landing heavily in the deepening snow, gasping aloud as she did so. There was a throbbing pain emanating from her right leg where a deep wound had just inexplicably opened; the red colour now seeping into the pristine snow standing as testament to this. The seventeen-year-old girl, previously of Kyrios, stared at her own blood colouring the snow and felt her tears welling and stinging her eyes as she attempted to blink them away- this sadness wasn't because of the Flower Maiden; this was her past and present catching up to her as she realized something was direly wrong with her…

"Kiba- I passed out because Cheza did! I hurt because Cheza does! I'm cut right now because Cheza is and I don't have an iota what's happening to me…my Pops hates my type- he doesn't know I'm alive and I'm too frightened to face him…Cheza told me she understood me and that I was the key; she apologised to me and I don't know why! That mad bitch, Jaguara, wants my head and I haven't a clue what I ever did to her…in the city I was the boss and knew what was happening, but since I joined up with you guys things have been happening so fast and for no reason…I sometimes wish I'd stayed in the city…"

Unknowing what to make of this sudden outburst Kiba remained where he was, eying the pitiful form of the girl crouching in the reddened snow, unwilling to move or walk on when she was like this…he was the pack leader and she was a member of his pack…but then the young man noticed something about Karasuke that seemed to stab at him- her shoulders were moving up and down slightly and then he heard the sound of her light sobs on the silent air; she was crying.

"Karasuke?"

"I don't know what's wrong with me and I don't have a clue what the hell the _key_ is…just go find Cheza; I'll only slow you down."

It was strange to think that the girl and boy were the same age, yet so different on so many levels…she loved the life of a human and had lived as one all her life- he, on the other hand, had always valued his pride as a wolf above anything else until _she_ had joined the pack. Cheza had easily been looked after by him and his three comrades- she'd became his epitaph of a younger sister and that was why the others had noticed how protective he was of the girl…but Karasuke was different. She was too independent to be big-bothered by them and that was why Kiba had more or less avoided speaking with her too much- he didn't know what to say, or how to respond to what she had to say. He'd been so used to thinking of Cheza as a younger sister that he'd automatically assumed that his feelings were the same for Karasuke…but he'd been wrong. They weren't the feelings of a brother he experienced for the attractive youth- no brother ever felt such strong urges for his sister…these feelings were stronger than any he'd ever had for Cheza and Kiba had tried and tried to convince himself that he was just feeling for her as a brother…but as he looked down at her crying lightly in the stained snow, he knew he cared for her more than he let himself believe.

"What're you doing?"

"Helping you up- we need to get our pack back from her…who cares if you slow me down."

Karasuke allowed her the alpha male to drape one of her arms around his neck and take her weight as he helped her to her feet, taking steps to match his as they both started out into the swirling snow of this deteriorating world.

* * *

"Where're you going, boy?"

Quent cursed under his breath as the younger male began walking forward, almost breaking into a run as he set his sights on the face of the youth staring out the back of the armoured vehicle- young, only barely a teenager with a silver bangle around his right wrist.

"You- you were one of the boys rescuing her that night! Where is she?"

"Hey- what d'you think you're doing?!"

The butt of a rifle was slammed forcefully into the blond man's chest, causing him to sink to his knees and clutch his winded stomach- two more armoured guards appeared and apprehended to the ex-sheriff of Kyrios as he attempted to retaliate to the first guard who'd struck Hubb. The rifle, along with all of his ammunition was seized as the two men were unceremoniously bundled into the armoured vehicle, along wit the other five already in there- one Hubb immediately recognised as Cheza- the other four, three males and a female, seemed to radiate around her, almost as though protecting the pink-haired young girl…but where was the lad with the jacket and jeans? And where was Karasuke? But these questions remained unanswered as the guards began barking at each other in gruff voices as they bolted shut the door through which the pair of men had been bundled.

"C'mon before anymore of Jaguara's lackeys arrive- we should reach Darcia's castle by sundown; if that woman finds out we've crossed her; she'll have our heads!"

**A/n- Please let me know what you guys thought of this chapter and thanks a million for reading!! XxxxxxxxxxxxxxX**


	9. Snow

**Author's Note;** So sorry about the wait with this- had some things to do in my life away from the computer, but here's the latest chapter and I really hope you guys like it. So please let me know!! XxxxxxxxxxxxxX

Umm, this chapter has been re-posted due to a light revising of annoying typos on my behalf; so I want to thank "**j.sakurachan1**" for her help in spotting these. Thanks huni, XxxxxxxxxxX

* * *

As the snow-laden wind buffeted her left side, Karasuke felt her balance cast slightly awry as she leaned to her right, feeling pain emanate from her injured leg once more. They'd been walking for hours at this stage- the first hour or so had been easy as it'd been child's play to find the deep tracks from the armoured vehicles in the snow…but then the falling flakes had taken their toll and the tracks had soon disappeared in the fresh coating of snow, making their objective a whole lot harder. Kiba had only relinquished her weight from his shoulders upon her convincing him she could walk perfectly fine, despite limping slightly- it had surprised her to find him so protective, but she supposed a leader needed to be. The teenager felt herself collide with the young man alongside her as the wind howled wanly, whistling across the tundra-reminiscint landscape around them. And although she smirked slightly and attempted to lighten the mood with a playful wink, Karasuke still felt a burden as Kiba's arm was felt on her shoulder, steadying her as they continued to walk along, feet sinking almost a foot down into the layer of fresh, dusty snow.

As the falling flakes began to ease off, a slight sparkle caught the attention of Kiba's green eyes. Only now noticing that his arm was still resting across her shoulders, rather comfortably, the young man hastily recalled his limb whilst keeping his gaze on the tarnished locket, not even thinking before his mouth had allowed the words to pass.

"Are there any photos in it?"

"Huh?"

It was cute, the way her emerald irises seemed to dance when looking up at him, her mind having been miles away when hearing the question. The seventeen-year-old forcefully masked a smirk via inclining his head towards the off-coloured pendant. Following his gaze, Karasuke laughed lightly and traced her fingers down the length of the chain until she grasped the locket, her nails expertly opening the miniscule lock that held the two sides of the locket together. A light click was heard as two halves came apart, one of them plain gold, but the other held a small photograph encased behind a tiny glass panel.

"It's of my family, see- Mama, Pops, me and Ruse…"

She indicated each different person by tapping her nail beneath each one…two adults, one of which he most certainly recognised, and two little children- both about the same age; the little boy with hazel hair and dark brown irises and then the girl…smiling from ear to ear and her grin a picture of impishness.

"You were cute."

"Are you trying to say I'm not cute anymore?"

"No- th…that's not…I- I didn't mea-"

"Cool it, Kiba; I'm only joking with you, boy."

Karasuke was laughing openly as she closed the locket and slipped it beneath the collar of her top- boys just seemed to put their foot in their mouth all too easily and she had to admit it was doubly amusing when the boy was supposed to be the leader of the pack she was now in. Having shared what background information she had with the Alpha male, the teenager now realized how little she knew of the hazel-haired youth. Toboe had told her of his time as a pet and the tale of his silver bracelets and the accidental killing of the old lady. The pup was a bit overly-keen when it came to new people; he had become accustomed to her within her second day in the pack…Tsume's story had been coincidentally a lot like her own and she'd taken delight in hearing of the many robberies he'd played a part in- although he sometimes came off as gruff, the man was kind once he knew you and had time to figure you out. Hige…Hige had been the first one to talk to her, even before joining the small pack and she was glad of that- he was happy go lucky to his very core, stomach-orientated and a bit of a flirt…but what Karasuke found a bit strange was Hige's own back-story: he remembered being in the city where he'd encountered Kiba, Tsume and Toboe, but he couldn't recall anything beyond that- when she ventured to ask, Hige stated he had no idea where he'd got his collar- only that he'd had it as long as he could recall…that was three out of four pasts she knew of.

"So, what about you?"

"Me?"

"Mmmm hmm…"

Karasuke took a small stumble as she hit an unexpectadly deep patch of snow and found herself knee-deep in freezing white flakes, losing her balance and falling backwards slightly, landing quite squarely on her butt. But what made it all the funnier was the way Kiba walked a few more steps ahead before noticing her lack beside him. Karasuke stayed where she was, folding her arms across her chest as she waited for him to look back. The youth glanced back over his shoulder, only to be met by the sight of the girl sitting rather proudly, knee-deep in the snow, waiting for him to notice. Unable to stop himself, Kiba let loose a laugh as he walked back and outstretched a hand to her.

"Are you planning on coming?"

"No, Mr. Leader; I think I'll stay here for a while and freeze my ass off…"

"C'mon Karasu-"

Kiba was cut off as he bent down to help her up, only to have his arm unexpectedly grabbed and jerked downwards, dragging him down into the snow head-first as she bent over doubled up with laughter. Seeing him trying to right himself, Karasuke stood quickly, eager to appear innocent of her little trick.

"Oh no you don't!"

"Kiba, don't you dare!"

Even as she shouted, Karasuke was cut off by her own laugh as she felt his strong arm around her waist, dragging her back down into the snow; landing with a soft crunching noise from the flakes beneath her. Still laughing, she turned to her right and crawled a bit, only to hear him laughing out loud- a noise that seemed to catch the girl off-guard due to lack of hearing it…but then it stopped abruptly- causing her to look back with slight worry. Kiba was lying in the snow, and he wasn't moving either.

"Kiba? Don't kid me around…Kiba?"

Now she was almost over his form and, unnoticed by herself, Karasuke was worried…until she saw the smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth; this worry dissipated in an instant as she realized she'd been played.

"You mongrel!"

"Bitch…"

"Can't argue with you on that one…"

The laughing was back as the snow began to fall yet again…and yet, in that same instant, the young woman realized how close she was to Kiba- _too_ close as she felt his breath on her cheeks, kneeling over him. The young leader seemed to realize this at the same time as his light green eyes darted off to the side in an attempt to stop staring at her blushing cheeks. Getting to her feet, Karasuke briskly walked away a few steps, brushing snow flakes from her burgundy tresses to occupy herself as Kiba stood. She shivered in the cold as she faced away from him, speaking as she did so.

"The next town shouldn't be too far, but I think we should try to beat this blizzard there before we freeze to death…"

Almost as though to emphasize her words, Karasuke ran her hands up and down her shoulders, trying to get rid of the annoying goosebumps that had sprung to life as she heard Kiba's feet crunching the snow behind her as he walked closer, before his deep voice was heard.

"Agreed."

When he passed and walked a few steps ahead, the young man wore only his jeans and white shirt; no customary dark jacket…Though she tried her hardest to hide it, Karasuke allowed her smile to grow, knowing only the back of his head would see it as she revelled in the warmth of the jacket he'd placed around her shoulders, slipping her hands through the sleeves that were a couple of inches too long for her smaller frame as she spoke lowly.

"Thanks…"

"What?"

"I said hurry up, _leader_…"

And with that, a rather large snowball collided with the back of Kiba's head.

* * *

"I hate Nobles…"

"I'm sure they love you, wolf scum…"

"Tsume!"

Toboe and Hige had to act fast to obstruct their comrade's intended path to Quent Yaiden. Two hours they'd been here, and in those two hours, Quent and Tsume had been at each other's throats quite constantly…so much so that Tsume had almost let slip of Karasuke…only for Blue to snap at him.

It was strange to think Blue sat in her corner, speaking with Hige…and her former master hadn't the slightest idea that she was so close to him. That human, with the blond hair, had been noticeably more at peace since one of the guards had escorted a woman to their holding cell- she apparently being his wife and the two were now in their own corner. Cheza had been separated from them upon arriving here.

_Here_- Darcia's Keep…that had been something unexpected as it had been Jaguara's troops to apprehend them. One thing was for sure- if that woman found out her own troops had double-crossed her and given the Flower Maiden to Darcia The Third…well, she wouldn't be in a good mood for long.

"What d'you think happened Kiba and….ummm…_Karasuke_?"

Toboe glanced over towards Quent as he lowly whispered the name, aware of the close proximities they were now in with another Yaiden. Tsume shrugged as he sat heavily on the ground, back against the bars of the cell- in yet another foul mood as he eyed the humans with utmost contempt.

"I just hope they get here quickly."

"You think they'll come?"

A bitter chuckle escaped the white-haired of the duo, though he meant his words in earnest.

"Trust me, pup- he'll come and she'll be following…if not for us, then for her."

Toboe looked to where Tsume was nodding- towards the corner to their left where Hige and Blue had stopped talking and the young Latino-looking woman was close to sleep; her head comfortably resting upon the shoulder of Porky…

**A/n- Well, please let me know what you thought of this chapter guys!! Thanks for reading again!! XxxxxxxxxxxxX**


	10. Excuses

**Author's Note;** Sorry about the long wait guys: I only just got back from a two-week holiday and I had no computer or writing material with me. Anyways, I'm trying to make my chapters longer overall so I hope this one is okay and like I said I'm sorry for the wait and I hope this chappie makes up for it a bit!! XxxxxxxxxX

* * *

The snoring came low and soft from the sleeping form in the adjacent corner as she inched closer, and then whispered lowly into the her ex-husband's ear, finally having realized why that picture had stuck in her mind for so long. The small little child had reminded her of someone…a young woman to be exact.

"Hubb…that girl who was responsible for all the robberies-"

"Karasuke? She's Quent's daughter…"

The name had come to his tongue naturally: in his mind only one name coincided with the word _robbery_. As he spoke, ex-Inspector inclined his head slightly at the sleeping older man- it had been bothering him for a while now- why did Quent believe his little girl to be dead for years when the child was now a teenager, renowned for her gang activity and infamous police-evading?

"She can't be his daughter: Darcia has a picture, it's old, but she's in it; only a little child…but it's definitely her."

Hubb shook his head- for as long as he'd known, Karasuke had been a resident of that small city; he now knew of her history in Kyrios, but nothing of a Noble background- the teen hated the Nobles and anyone associated with them, a fact she displayed openly whilst in the city of Lord Orkham. A few more minutes of thoughtful silence passed before Hubb spoke again- this time his voice deep with thought, laced with seriousness.

"I…I think she's a wol-"

A low growl from the opposite side of the cell caused the blond to stop short, not feeling the safest as the white-haired man kept a watchful eye on him…or maybe that eye was a bit more threatening than it was watchful: either way, it served in keeping the ex-Inspector rather quiet as the white-haired man spoke threateningly.

"If she wanted the old guy to know she was alive, she'd have told him. Karasuke has nothing to do with you now. Mention her name to _him_ and it'll be me you have to answer to!"

Toboe eyed Tsume as he jerked a thumb at his own chest whilst talking lowly to the blond man. The youth was surprised by the ferocity in the older wolf's words- it seemed as though Karasuke had assimilated rather well with her pack-mates. With a sinking heart, Toboe supposed Tsume would feel closer to Karasuke because of their similar pasts…but _he'd_ known the ex-thief longer. What right did _she_ have to take his friend from him? The young wolf had warmed to the girl initially, but why were they behind bars and Cheza captured when she was out there running freely with Kiba? _Kiba_- why hadn't their leader escaped with Cheza? Only weeks ago he would have taken the pink-haired girl to safety without a second thought, but something had changed drastically in those weeks; Karasuke had arrived in their pack. She was pretty, she could fight well and was used to living amongst males…everything he wasn't- Toboe cast a glance at his own hands and took note of his trademark silver bracelets: he'd never be able to compete with the new arrival- he'd been raised as a pet, taught never to fight others. He was uncannily aloof and not the bravest when it came to battles…Kiba, Hige and Tsume had learned to adapt to a female in the pack but he couldn't. He blamed Kiba for tripping her pursuer back in the city…he blamed Hige for accepting her offer of food and shelter…he blamed himself for being so naïve not to notice she was a wolf. But Toboe blamed Tsume most of all: blamed him for warming up to Karasuke and forgetting about him. Why couldn't Tsume see how Karasuke was deliberately becoming the centre of attention? Anger rose within the pup towards the wolf he looked up to. She was stealing away the only family he'd ever had and she had to be stopped.

Tsume blinked with surprise as Toboe suddenly got to his feet and, without a single word, walked to other side of the cell and leaned against the bars. His back was purposefully facing both Tsume and Hige. It would have been facing Kiba too, had he been there instead of saving _her_.

* * *

People unintentionally bumped into one another as they idly pushed their way through the crowded streets. The pair had managed to trail the armoured vehicles to this populace…admittedly with a bit of difficulty as the blizzard had reached its climax and seeing your own feet beneath you had become an achievement in itself. Then more trouble had ensued as the scent trail had weakened substantially when they'd closed in on the city- it was one of Jaguara's territories and she had a notorious habit of enveloping her towns and cities with so many different scents it became impossible to single one particular smell out, and that was the next hurdle to be countered- they'd managed to make it to the edge of the city and now had no scent trail or any other leads try following as the blizzard had obliterated any tracks: dead end.

This City was bigger than the last- maybe three or four times larger…and yet with that daunting size came a flicker of hope for the former thief-leader as she spotted a few familiar traits sported by various people in the crowd. With a smirk of recognition, Karasuke hastened her pace, pulling ahead of Kiba and approaching a youth, a little older than her.

"You run with Claire?"

"Depends whose asking…"

It was a brown-haired girl of about twenty or so that turned upon hearing the query, lightning-fast in her attitude-laced rebuttal whilst running a distasteful blue gaze up and down the shorter girl as a young man walked up behind her. All the while, Karasuke's green eyes took in the other female's appearance: scruffy, but with a grubby yellow bandana tied loosely around her neck. Another girl stood close-by…another yellow bandana around her neck. Young women sifting through the crowd also sported the same trademark as they masterfully extracted wallets and purses from the unknowing people around them. With her ears picking up on the telltale sound of armour clinking, Karasuke returned her attention to the taller girl and spoke seriously.

"My gang run with the little ones."

"Karasuke Yaiden?"

Kiba watched as the older girl's expression changed in severity and softened to slight surprise; he'd been lost at Karasuke's words, but apparently this young woman understood completely. He'd also heard the approaching guards at the same time and was thankful as, after a few hushed words between them, the brunette girl nodded her head lightly and began walking away from them. With a serious look on her normally playful face, Karasuke turned and grabbed his arm, yanking him into the crowd after her; there was no joking and no smart comment from the teen- just an abnormal silence that seemed a bit unnerving.

The bustling bodies closed in around them in less than a second. Kiba couldn't help but thank the heavens he wasn't claustrophobic, but it did little to help- another few minutes amongst the crushing mob and he would be. He'd been raised in the wilderness and had no clue about cities this big: it seemed as though too many people occupied this area of land. How could there be enough air here for all of them? All of a sudden, the bustling seemed to intensify sevenfold as the brunette girl stopped briefly ahead of them and reigned in a couple of the bandana-sporting girls around her. A few seconds later and the girls had dispersed, each one shouting and causing a commotion as they openly mugged the people in the crowd. Just as the pack-leader thought the very air in his lungs would be squeezed out by the crushing crowd, Karasuke pulled him sharply forward and the genius of the girl thieves could be seen- they'd caused a commotion in their open-mugging and were clogging up the street, occupying the attention of the guards who had rounded the corner- distracting them (and their wolf-scanners) from the two wolves that had just entered the city.

The crowd moved on and engulfed them yet again. Karasuke's hand was forced from his arm by the pushing of the people eager to get away from the pick-pockets and the ill-tempered guards. For an almost terrifying moment, the world seemed to speed up as bodies rushed past and Jaguara's guards drew ever closer until Kiba's feet took control and found a staggering path through the rush, but his green eyes found no sight of his newest pack-member, until they were cast downward…and the guards appeared no more than ten feet away in the bustle.

"Karasuke-"

Anything further was cut short by the impending guards and the brunette girl coming back to through the crowd towards them.

"We need to move it like now! Our girls are pulling out before they're arrested, c'mon!"

By the time she'd finished half-shouting at him, Karasuke had managed to regain her footing somewhat, only to be caught off-guard as she was yanked away from the crowd by a hand wrapping around hers. A few seconds of avoiding collisions and falling to the ground in the near-stampede and they were out of the street and down an alley. The brown-haired girl led them as quickly as she could: down one alley, across a smaller street and through several more little passageways until the noise of the guards and city-dwellers had all but disappeared.

"What happened you?"

"I tripped over someone's foot."

He didn't believe her one bit and Karasuke knew it by the look in his eyes, but what else could she say? It would seem a bit far-fetched to announce she'd fallen to the ground for no apparent reason in the midst of a panicked crowd. She'd tell him the truth once they were clear of this city, but for now…she'd tripped over a person's foot and that was all to be told. And what right did he have to question her anyway? By all right, she should ask Kiba why he was still holding her hand in his…then again, maybe she'd ask him later: she didn't want to offend him or anything and besides- it wasn't doing any harm. With a slight smirk, Karasuke noticed how her mind ran through all these excuses to keep the contact and she returned the grip of his hand.

It was just because he was running, that was all. As the thief kept a few metres ahead of him, Kiba used his longer legs to keep up- he had no idea where they were going or why, but it was better than Jaguara's men catching them. The youth kept his head low as he ran: it was just because he was running. That was why his face was a little coloured and his breathing a hitched in his throat for a second- because of exertion…not because her smaller hand had just tightened around his. He was running after all.

**A/n- Well, I hope you guys liked it. Sorry about the wait again and please let me know what you thought!! C yas!! XxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxX**


	11. Dreams

**Author's Note;** This is just a re-posted, revised version as the last was riddled with spelling and grammatical errors. Sorry about that!

* * *

"Papa, watch!"

The small grey eyes looked over his shoulder at the delighted shout, excitement evident in her young voice. Tumbling around the in the long Kyrios grass with Blue and Ruse, giggling infectiously as the sun shone down from the light blue sky above, making her dark red hair shimmer.

The man had forgotten how long it had been since Blue; only a pup had wandered off into the woods and found the little girl. For the first day or so the whole village had congressed on what to do about the little girl, her being only a mere toddler. Quent had been dead-set on taking the small child to an orphanage in one of the large domed cities to the north, until he'd seen the way Rasika had taken a shine to the child, having taken her in for the few nights she was supposed to stay in Kyrios before being taken to the city … but that plan had died a horrible death when, on her second and supposed-to-be last night in the village, she had spoken to him.

All the while, since being found, the child hadn't uttered a single word and many had taken her for being deaf. It was late when Rasika had finally gotten the toddler Ruse off to sleep and he'd been left alone in the sitting room with the small girl, who his wife had insisted upon housing as it had been he and his dog to find her.

The small girl had sat on a seat and stared into space quite contently whilst he'd shot sideways glances at the peculiar little child. She was the cutest little girl he'd ever seen- with sparkling green eyes and dark red hair … though he'd perceived her looks were at the sacrifice of her hearing and speech, for she hadn't spoken a single word, until Blue had quietly padded into the room and sat down by the child's feet, looking up expectantly for a pat. With a sigh, the sheriff looked to the pup and spoke lowly.

"Leave the kid alone, Blue …"

"_Blue_; I like her name. I'm Karasuke …"

It was as her little, plump face smiled up at him that the ex-sheriff woke from the nostalgic dream, only to see the same people and the same iron bars holding them prisoner. Still at the Keep. And yet his mind continued to reel back through the memories of the life that now seemed a dream in itself.

It had been a shocker and a half - not only could the child talk, but she seemed somewhat more articulate than her age suggested.

Karasuke never moved out of that house, she grew up as the daughter of he and Rasika, a fact Quent knew his wife was thankful for. They had had Ruse late in life and it seemed that he would be their only child, up until Blue had found that small girl in the woods.

But then the damned wolves had attacked the village and his family had been lost forever. To this day Quent still travelled to the remains of Kyrios in a bid to gain closure from the two graves that resided there - Rasika and their son, Ruse. Karasuke's body had never been found … probably carried off by those murderous beasts: those _wolves_.

* * *

"Claire!"

Kiba was partially aware of her hand leaving his slight grip, with Karasuke already half-way across the room, a smile lighting up her features as she registered the girl standing before her - an attractive young woman with bright blond hair and clear blue eyes, maybe in her early twenties.

Within an instant the two young women were embracing, with laughter ringing around the room as numerous girls passed in and out, all sporting the same yellow bandana around their necks.

"Little Karasuke … long time no see."

The woman named Claire smiled widely as she looked down the inch or so with her blue eyes, taking in the appearance of the seventeen-year-old she had met as only a child. That was years ago at this stage, and they'd gone their separate ways, but she'd always heard tales of the gang that ran with the little ones. Just as she made to say something else, her attention shifted to the young man standing by the wall, seemingly unsure of what to make of all this.

"He's one too, isn't he?"

"Yeah … Kiba, this is Claire; a good friend, and Claire, this is Kiba."

A nod in each direction was all the two exchanged across the wide floor. It was all that was needed.

* * *

"Okay, I know which way they went."

The pale green eyes looked up to the emerald ones. Three hours she'd been gone; one of the many girls that culminated in this gang had led him to the small room, with two single beds. It seemed that the base of this group was much more than just a simple warehouse, or deserted building, as was the norm with the rampant gangs throughout the cities. This base consisted of a simple, crumbling little house, with a solitary camouflaged trap door. Beneath ground level was a whole other world as far as he was concerned - electricity was wired up and siphoned from the Nobles' supplying cables that ran at ground level, but what was most impressive were the large, hollowed caverns and numerous tunnels that could lead you to anywhere you wished within this city, all the while in total secrecy.

"Sorry I took so long … things aren't as simple as we thought. It wasn't Jaguara's troops who took them - they betrayed her and took Cheza and the guys to Darcia's Keep, northwest of here … and Jaguara is mobilizing and heading there herself."

"So we just need to get there before her … you okay?"

For some reason, Kiba found it slightly unnerving that Karasuke was now staring absently at the rough floor, being abnormally quiet as an awkward look came over her subdued face.

"Pops is there aswell."

"I see."

"Yup. Gonna be a fun trip. Claire said he was taken by the guards because of some disruption he caused them with Hubb; a detective I know from way back.

Karasuke sat beside Kiba, leaned back against the cracking rock wall and held her head in hands for a few seconds - it was easy to avoid him for all these years, but she'd never thought she'd actually have to meet Pops again after so long spent deceiving the man. Judging by her body language, it seemed quite obvious Karasuke wasn't up for any planning right now - looks like they'd have to wing it if they made it to the keep before Jaguara: it was a good thing he was getting used to doing so since she'd joined the pack.

"That Claire seems to know a lot …"

The girl hid a slight smile: He was changing the subject again, what was with this boy? Every time things went quiet, he asked about her, and yet when she dared venture about his past, Kiba always seemed to avoid the topic somehow. Still smiling lightly, the girl looked up, maybe even grateful for the topic change - it saved her thinking about Pops, and also from remembering Blue's berating words of days ago.

"Claire has connections all over the cities. She used to live in Orkham's years ago: that's where I first met her after everything at Kyrios. She's six years older than me, so she kinda took care of me until her uncle moved to this city. Her parents had died, so she went with him, but we kinda kept in touch over the years."

The girl fidgeted for a few seconds, idly staring at her knees, as though contemplating how to deliver her next words; it was hard enough for her to explain as it was, let alone try and tell someone else of the unique ability her friend possessed.

"She knows I'm a wolf, and she knew you were one as soon as she saw you too …"

"How is that possible?"

"Don't really know … but there are some humans who carry genes that enable them to see wolves. Both of Claire's parents carried the gene, so she inherited it, and so did her brothers."

"Brothers?"

Somehow, the prospect of numerous others that could distinguish wolves at first sight without a scanner didn't seem all that promising to the pack-leader as he eyed the red-haired teen across from him, who was smiling a bit more brightly at the prospect of unnerving him.

"Well, the wolf scanners that Jaguara uses, they were made after extensive research and the capturing of 90 percent of the gene-carrying humans; using their eyes and bloodlines as materials to make the scanners … that's why Claire lived with her uncle. She's the youngest of four - her and three older brothers, who are currently employed by Jaguara and hence her _connections_. Jaguara killed their parents, so her brothers act as spies, sending info to Claire."

The youth broke off as another girl entered the room, a yellow bandana adorning her neck as she blushed, not having noticed the room to be occupied, and drawing the wrong conclusion from a teenage boy and girl being together in a room. As the presuming member hastily exited, Karasuke found her fingers to be automatically tracing the chain, and lightly touching her locket. Things weren't meant to be so complicated - get to Jaguara's keep and get Cheza, Hige, Tsume and Toboe; simple stuff, until the target location had changed, and the captives had multiplied.

"What is with the bandanas?"

Another change of topic at just the right moment, gaining another wry grin as Karasuke found herself back in her element; talking about gangs was the only thing she seemed good at recently.

"Each gang on this planet has a unique characteristic; a trademark. It's like a code - every gang knows all the trademarks and can identify rival and ally gangs by the mark unique to the leader at that time. Claire's gang is female and sports the bandana, I ran with little ones; I had a few people my age and older, but most of my gang were younger than me, some only little kids like Tarashi."

Kiba couldn't help but to smirk at the memory of the small girl who had sniffed them out on their arrival at the gang's base. That seemed a whole lifetime ago at this stage, not a mere couple of months. Her joining of their pack had really brought drama, to say in the least. What was he thinking that evening when they'd entered the city and he'd tripped the enraged pursuer? Wasn't he the member that had always been silent and watching, and Hige the one to act impulsively? What had she done to him?

She'd become immediate friends with Hige and Toboe, and had somehow managed to have a very good friendship with Tsume - something that the young leader still found to be surprising, for he still didn't get on with the silver-haired one all that well.

But what Kiba found most intriguing about Karasuke's assimilation into the pack was her relationship with Cheza. Whereas, once upon a time, the Flower Maiden had been closer to him than anyone else, but now the thirteen-year-old seemed to be stuck on Karasuke - always walking beside her and speaking together. Maybe it was something to do with them both being females, but he didn't mind it really - Cheza had been a lot happier since the arrival of the blonde wolf.

A slight weight leaning slightly on his shoulder caused Kiba to look to Karasuke, who had unexpectedly fallen asleep alongside him. Letting loose a smirk that nobody else would see, Kiba laughed lightly as he idly pushed some red hair back behind the teen's ear. She honestly didn't resemble any other wolves he had ever seen - her human form seemed so much more natural and suited to her. He could distinguish a wolf by first glance as was the same with their entire dwindling race, but with Karasuke, one had to perform a double-take for her human form seemed to maintain even when viewed by another wolf. With a stifled yawn, the brown-haired youth leaned back against the wall, feeling exhausted. He'd only close his eyes for a few minutes, already feeling his mind slipping into the darkness of sleep and succumbing to the dreams of a large pack of Snow wolves, amongst which he once ran, only for them to disappear and the lone cub to be taken in by the Shaman … a dream he could never escape.

* * *

"Come on Karasuke, darling …"

The blonde woman was there again, smiling down at her with her light violet eyes, laughter punctuating the air. Yet it wasn't this beautiful woman that was laughing; the low, almost monotone voice was coming from the young man leaning against the wall near the open double doors that led into the huge house.

The small slip of a girl was smiling as she stood near her employers. The haunting green eyes and dark hair watched the little toddler with hawk-like eyes; the eyes of a nanny that cared for the child when her mother was ill, something that was happening alarmingly more frequently. Kaori had served this family for years and she would stand by her beloved Lord.

Many nights, for years upon years now, these three people had haunted her dreams and yet, the seventeen-year-old felt as if she knew them.

**A/n- Thanks for taking the time to read my fic, and please tell me what you think guys!! XxxxxxxxxxxxX**


	12. The Keep

**Author's Note:** Hi everyone!! I tried to make up for the poor quality of the last chapter with this one, so I hope it worked! There'll be more of the pack in the next chapter I promise; I just needed to get this bit out of the way first. Anyways, thanks again for taking the time to read my fic guys; you know it means the world to me!! XxxxxxxxxxxxX

* * *

"Damn, that's one creepy castle."

Only the whipping wind answered Karasuke as she smirked to herself; obviously he still wasn't talking to her. She couldn't help but stifle a laugh as Kiba shot her a glare that was icy enough to compete with the snow falling around them. With a grin, the teen decided to try her luck again.

"Still mad, huh?"

Now she was outright laughing at his temper. Okay, so they could have been a few miles ahead of schedule by now if she'd woken him up on time, but it had been the longest that the lad had slept since she'd joined the pack, so when she had awoken that morning, embarrassingly leaning against him while he remained in a deep sleep, Karasuke had decided to be considerate. He'd only slept an extra hour or two, but that had been enough to set Kiba in a bad mood for the rest of the day.

They could have headed off at sunrise and been at the Keep already, with Cheza in their possession and back running with Hige, Tsume and Toboe. She'd been reminded of this for the last couple of hours as they'd waded through the snow in utter silence - any attempt at a conversation was shut down by Kiba's angered glare. For the first three or four miles, Karasuke had remained silent and feigned guilt, but that had become boring after a while and she'd taken to talking loudly and generally trying to annoy him.

"Oh c'mon Kiba; we're here now!"

Exasperated, the girl threw her arms up into the air; boys were impossible! With gritted teeth, the leader of the small pack began scaling the moderate cliff-face below the Keep; once at the top, it would be a simple task to infiltrate the castle and find Cheza. Glancing back, Kiba took note of Karasuke's seeming hesitation at following him.

With a grimace, the former thief discovered that there was no other way up to the Keep without climbing. Swearing lightly, she sized-up the snow-covered cliff. Sure, it may have been of moderate height for Kiba or even the other three guys in the pack had they been there, but to her it was _huge_. Okay, so maybe heights weren't one of her strong points …

"You coming or staying down there?"

Narrowing her eyes down to an evil glare, Karasuke shot a look up at Kiba -after hours of boredom, _now _he decides to talk to her. Looking up at the cliff again, the girl swore under her breath and moved towards it, very slowly beginning to climb it. If only that smug idiot above knew how much she hated him right at that moment.

It was kind of scary; how quick the ground seemed to distance itself from her feet despite the snail-like speed at which the teen advanced. With curiosity gaining the better of her, Karasuke dared shoot a glance down at the ground, now a good hundred metres below, a strong gust of wind deciding to buffet her just at that moment.

"Ahhh!"

Upon hearing her cry out, Kiba looked back down; he was about two or three feet from the top of the cliff by now and Karasuke was only about half-way up. The anger of that morning seemed to dissipate in an instant as he eyed her. She was genuinely terrified; her body flattened against the rock face. Guilt immediately flared to life.

Just reach up for a hold, then lift a foot - one after the other, just keep going … see; that was all to it and yet the young woman was frozen to the spot, her body paralyzed. Her jeans were ripped, her hoody threadbare and unbearably thin as the snow swirled around and raised goosebumps on her skin, shivering ensuing. A loud crack resonated around as she felt her foot shift somewhat.

"Karasuke, don't move!"

Shit! She wasn't standing on rock at all - it was an outcrop made of ice and now it was coming away from the cliff-face. Kiba found himself to be retracing his steps as fast as possible. He was almost there. For some odd reason his heart felt as though it were up in his mouth, skipping a beat as he saw the panic in her emerald eyes as the thin ice terrace suddenly gave way, allowing the petrified girl to let loose a cry of terror as she became momentarily weightless and began to fall. The last few steps seemed to disappear as Kiba reached to grab her.

His hand gripped her shoulder; more so, his jaws closed around her shoulder and held her tight as he braced himself against the edge of the terrace. Karasuke gasped as she felt the wolf's teeth gripping her. He wasn't biting hard, just enough to hold her in place. Gratitude flooded the teenager as she registered she was no longer falling, but foolishly cast a glance at the ground below.

"Please don't let me go, Kiba …"

By now, her voice was only a hoarse whisper; her vocal chords constricted with fright. A few seconds later and she was sitting on the remains of the terrace, no longer dangling hundreds of feet above the ground. Without thinking, Karasuke wrapped her arms around Kiba's neck and hugged the youth. She'd neglected to wake him, annoyed him for hours upon hours, cursed him and shot him evil eyes and he'd just saved her life.

"Karasuke, you're okay … shhh…"

It was only then that Kiba noticed that Karasuke was actually crying. This was only the second time he'd ever seen her do this and yet it seemed much more poignant this time as they sat far above the ground. With a hand lightly on her head as she continued crying, Kiba slowly pulled them both back from the edge of the remaining terrace, pinning his back to the rock face. His heart was racing as though he were still rushing back down the cliff-face. The young man had no clue how he'd managed to get back down to her in time, his mind repetitively replaying the rush. The only thing his mind could think of was what he would have done had she fallen … That feeling was back, he one he'd been feeling for weeks now; that he would die before she would, that he would have thrown himself off of that cliff if it had meant saving her and yet he didn't understand it in the slightest; why did he care about her so much?

"I'm sorry …"

"It's okay. You're safe."

For a split-second, all seemed fine until Kiba realized his hand had swept her dark red hair back from her face and they were very close indeed. Karasuke hastily looked away as a blush consumed her cheeks, clashing with her hair colour. Over the last week or so since it had just been them, her interests had shifted somewhat. Initially, it had been purely for the prospect of Paradise, then this whole 'key' thing with Cheza, but now Karasuke blushed deeper as she realized how much she'd come to depend on Kiba. More than depend; she'd only felt remotely like this once before in Orkham's city about a year or so ago when she'd fell for a guy, but he turned out to be an undercover teen commissioned by the police force to try and taker her in. But it was different with Kiba somehow - she knew that the pack leader was a genuine type, but she'd never felt anything _this_ strong before; it was exciting in a way, but she was no fool - he had enough on his plate with Cheza and the pack, and the search for Paradise without a noisy and boisterous girl crushing on him. She was the daughter of the man trying to kill him and had managed to separate him totally from the Flower Maiden. Karasuke knew she was nothing but trouble and was under no illusions about just that, so why would he even be interested in her? With a feigned smirk hiding her disappointed thoughts, she allowing Kiba to pull her to her feet. And in doing so, caught a quick glimpse over the edge of the swirling snow beneath them, causing her to start back.

"Take it easy … look, you stay in front of me and I'll stay on the outside in case you slip, okay?"

Karasuke nodded her head as Kiba placed a hand on her shoulder and lightly steered her to the rock face again, standing right behind her. Noticing the goosebumps on her skin, he paused for a second.

"Here."

"But what about-"

"I'll be fine; it's starting to look better on you anyway."

"Thanks Kiba."

The young ex-thief smiled her thanks as she slipped her arms into the now-familiar sleeves of the overly-big jacket. She felt guilty about the effect the cold had on her when he could withstand it with only a white t-shirt. Karasuke blinked as she registered she was moving and much faster than before. The small terrace soon receded beneath her feet. Once or twice she slipped and thought she would fall again, but each time he would let her lean back against his chest and brace her until she got her footing back and continued upwards again. Before she knew it they were both sitting on the snow at the top, safely away from the dge of the cliff.

"Wasn't so hard, was it?"

Before she knew it, Karasuke had shot him her evil eyes again as he started laughing, lying back on the snow and catching his breath. With an air of indignance, the seventeen-year-old rolled up the sleeve of the tattered jacket and scooped up a large handful of snow, compacting it into a ball and letting it fly.

"I nearly died and you're laughing!"

A rival snowball was his response, hitting her in the side of the head. Karasuke blinked for a second as she registered that he'd thrown one back - normally Kiba called her childish and refused to participate in throwing snowballs, especially when she'd messed around with Hige and Toboe, maybe even getting Tsume to join in.

"You okay?"

His hand was on her shoulder. It was only then that the young woman realized she'd been spaced out for a few minutes, her mind lost in the memories of messing around with the other three; she missed the banter of Toboe, the food discussions of Hige and the gang talk of Tsume … but once they got the guys back, there would also be Blue to deal with aswell. She looked up to see him staring at her with concern. She knew what he was thinking - she'd told him of falling in the crowd because Cheza had been hurt, and now he was most likely wondering if this spacing-out had anything to do with Cheza. Karasuke shook her head and, as she saw him relax, flashed a grin and yanked on his arm, dragging Kiba down into the snow and masterfully straddling his stomach and pinning his arms with her knees - she'd done it hundreds of time; it was the best way to break up fights between the older boys in the gang. She'd pin one lad and Kirin would get the other.

"Now, Mr. Leader … what about you, huh? You know where I come from, and everyone else, but you never say anything about your past!"

His light green eyes diverted immediately as she asked the question and demanded an answer - it was almost like an automatic reaction at this stage. He didn't like these questions - the guys never asked and that made things easier in the pack, until _she_'_d_ come along. And for some reason he didn't really mind telling her, for some reason he didn't mind her sitting on him the way she was or being in such close proximity.

"When I was a pup my pack were killed when Jaguara's troops set fire to the forest we lived in, a Shaman found me and raised me."

Shit, that was more than she'd bargained for. If she'd had the ability to kick herself right then, Karasuke Yaiden would have done so in an instant; no wonder he didn't talk about it. At least Pops was still alive; none of his family were.

"Kiba, I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

"It's fine."

He locked his gaze with her in order to reassure his words. The girl gave something akin to an impish grin as she shrugged her shoulders. She looked so endearing in that ill-fitting jacket that it made him smile, an action which in turn caused Karasuke laugh lightly. And there he had that feeling again - that impulse that told him no other man or wolf should have her, that he would always look after her and catch her if she fell. Casting a fleeting glance at the awaiting Keep, Kiba knew he wouldn't get a chance to be this open when all of the pack were reunited. She seemed to have an effect on him that made him somewhat more … open? No, that wasn't quite the word … _expressive_, that was it; she seemed to make him more expressive.

"Kiba, what're you doing?"

Nervousness tinted her voice as she asked the question, but it was nothing compared to the confusion that seemed to dance within Kiba's light green eyes.

"I … I don't know …"

A knot formed in her stomach as Karasuke felt his hand light upon her cheek; her own hand automatically coming up to rest on his as she looked down to him, confusion now evident in her deep emerald eyes. This confusion was forgotten as she locked gazes with his own eyes - a plethora of acceptance. Her hand seemed so small on his, but it was warm; seemed that the jacket had come in useful.

She didn't know why she did it, but as soon her lips touched his, Karasuke immediately blushed so deep she felt her cheeks burn. She looked away, outraged at herself, and made to stand from where she was still sitting on his chest. The girl made it half-way before a hand encircled her wrist and stopped her from leaving, pulling her slight weight back down to sit on his chest, only this time Kiba sat up somewhat to meet her.

His hand was on her cheek again, half into her hair and the seventeen-year-old girl responded by linking her arms around his strong neck and returning the kiss as the snow continued to swirl around.

* * *

"Something wrong?"

Kiba had stopped walking through the snow as he'd felt his hand being tugged backwards; Karasuke had stopped walking and her hand was somewhat hanging in limbo before her where it was intertwined with his own.

"Cheza's definitely inside, but …"

"What?"

Those emerald eyes were filled with almost painful confusion as the girl thought back through her memory. There was something about this place.

"I've been here before, I know it …"

And there it was like a light bulb appearing over the head of an inspired individual ; that dream, with the husband and wife, the little girl and the house servant in the garden.

**A/n- So please let me know what you thought of it guys and thanks again for taking the time to read it!! XxxxxxxxxxX**


	13. Memories

**Author's Note:** Hey there guys! I really hope you like this chappie, and if things are getting a little confusing, then the main plot will become clear in the next chapter beacuse if I keep this up, I'll confuse myself, lol! Anyways, please let me know what you think!! XxxxxxxxxxxX

* * *

Light footsteps reverberated along the cavernous hallways of the castle. Only minimal sunlight penetrated this fortress, and even that was limited by the high windows and muting blizzard raging outside. No noise penetrated the thick, almost-black walls; only intensified the sounds within.

"What's wrong … Toboe?"

Tsume looked to where the pup had only just woken up, cocking his head to the side and staring rather intently at the floor of the cell they were still trapped within. Hige was awake now aswell and looking to the youngest of their pack too.

"I thought I heard something …"

There it was again. There was no mistaking it; an echo of footsteps radiating up the halls. It was light and far away, but Toboe's hearing could clearly pick up on the noise, but it didn't seem to be getting any closer; more like further away to his perceptive hearing.

* * *

"This is the wrong way, I'm telling you!"

Karasuke cringed as her hiss seemed to bounce off the walls and snap back at her. The empty ornamental suits of armour watched blindly as the two intruders paused, the female pointing the opposite way to which they were walking. Casting a glance up at the high window they'd managed to get through, Kiba looked down to Karasuke, still wearing his jacket.

"How do you know?"

"I told you; I've been here before - up that way are the main chambers and family rooms, back _my_ way leads to detainment cells, now come _on_!"

Grabbing a hand and sounding like a frustrated child, she yanked until Kiba followed, but immediately paused as she caught sight of familiar double doors. Dark stained wood that reached from floor to ceiling with ornate polished handles and intricate carved designs.

"Karasuke-"

"You go ahead … I'll catch up."

Despite the obvious want to question her motives, Kiba went ahead anyway; they had gotten this far and Jaguara would most likely soon be at the Keep aswell. So far they'd been blessed not to run into Darcia, but that was only luck; sooner or later he'd make an appearance and the white wolf wanted Toboe, Tsume and Hige running with them again should that happen. He just hoped Karasuke would be quick and catch up soon.

* * *

The handle was familiar under her trembling fingers and the creak of the heavy door rang numerous bells within the labyrinth of her muddled memory. She remembered running through that very doorframe many years ago in what felt like another lifetime. The huge room wasn't the same though …

Gone were the beautiful chairs and seats; covered in fabric sheets that had once been white, but now grey with time. The paintings and photographs were all shrouded in a film of dust, except one. A lonesome photo stood weakly against the wall. No frame to protect it and crumpled as though held in a hand one too many times. The shelf seemed to loom before the seventeen-year-old as she reached up and took down the frail picture. It was yellowed with age, but the image still shone like a beacon.

Three faces looked back up at her, all three familiar, yet foreign to her memory at the same time. There was a young woman with blonde hair and striking violet eyes, and an equally young man - blue eyes that matched the hue of his hair. But what caught Karasuke's attention was the little baby - only about two or three - that was sat on the woman's lap. The infant's emerald eyes stared out of the photograph, up at their older self.

"_Lord Darcia_, _Lady Hamona and Miss Karasuke_."

The elegant handwriting on the back told the tale of the photo, giving each of the faces a name and identity. The only problem was the more she learned, the less the teenager knew of her own identity. Her eyes darted around; that ornate two-seater in the corner, shrouded by a greying sheet, was the same one the three had sat upon for the picture, and that small rattle on the floor was the one the infant held.

Bending down, the seventeen-year-old picked up the silver baby's toy. It was heavy, but quant- small ceramic beads held within made the device produce the telltale rattling sound. She shivered; knowing by the dust that it was the first time in an age the item had been moved and also knowing the sound in all its haunting familiarity, or so it seemed. Her thumb gently wiped away at the marring film of dust.

"_Karasuke_…"

There was that name again; _her_ name. Carved quite intricately into the revealed silver. Quiet beeping noises immediately made the girl stand upright, dropping the heavy rattle onto the cold tiled floor. The sharp noise that rang out seemed angry at her for intruding into this frozen vaccuum of a room, and yet Karasuke found herself to be walking slowly towards glass-paned French doors; the quite beeping becoming louder as she got closer.

Wires were strung everywhere, connected to small machines lined up along the walls of this large anex room that opened up unto a balcony. Red-coloured wires … all radiating from one source in the centre of the room. A somewhat pedestal-like bed, with white satin sheets reaching the ground like a torrent of fabric. And lying within the centrepiece of a bed was the woman from the picture; Hamona. Cascading blonde hair spilled from the bed, at one with the satin sheets, but the striking violet eyes were a thing of the past.

She was a shell of the mother in the photograph - machines lifted her chest up and down, fuelling her existence. A few items lay on a table to the side of the bed, but one thing drew the curious, yet apprehensive former-thief to the table; a silver locket. In sharp contrast to tarnished golden one hanging around her neck, this one was a lustrous silver, as though it had been polished on a daily basis. Her name - the one thing that tied her to this place over and over again - was seen to be engraved into the surface of the locket.

"I'll thank you to leave things where they belong."

And with that telltale undertone voice, did the third face allow for the photograph to be acted out once again, albeit fourteen years later. Lord Darcia III was standing no more than ten feet away from her, his eyes boring into her own. Karasuke felt frozen to the spot; in all her years stealing and pilfering, she'd never been caught and yet here she was, red-handed and not knowing how to react. The youth looked to the woman in the bed, and then to the locket she held in her hand, asking the first question to come to mind.

"Why do you keep her alive, even though there's no hope?"

"My Lord Darcia, Lady Jaguara has reached the Keep."

"Kaori?"

The teen narrowed her eyes slightly, almost doubting herself as the name fell from her lips in a confused tone. The haunting green eyes looked to her and softened somewhat. She knew this small-built woman with her dark hair and clothes. She … used to care for her, more than the blonde … but …

"Miss Karasuke, you've come home."

The petite woman, Kaori, was slowly walking towards her now, smiling. _Home_ … she had had one of those, but that was in Kyrios with a simple Sheriff's family and in a simple little village. The locket spun on its chain, hanging from her grip as memories finally managed to break through; free of the mental block the girl had kept them behind since the age of four. Her head shook slowly, at the same time a large explosion rocking the entire castle.

"_Kiba_ …"

Desperate to leave this room full of released memories behind, Karasuke put her thieving skills to use and made a hasty exit out the French doors and through the shrouded tiled room that held the picture of her and the two strangers. She should have forgotten the door and went with Kiba earlier; they would've been outside already and now Jaguara was here and … she was standing right in front of her, with half a dozen of her troops.

"Shit!"

The youth cast a glance over her shoulder; no use going that way, towards the family rooms and main chambers - that'd only lead her to a dead end. The girl had absolutely no idea how she knew the layout of the castle so perfectly, but Karasuke figured she might aswell make use of the knowledge as situations called for.

"And where do you think you're going, little one? I must say; you turned out prettier than I imagined."

More explosions, beyond the speaking Noble woman, down by the detainment cells. The guys were down there, and probably Cheza too. This wasn't supposed to happen this way - get in, get the guys and Cheza, then get out and far away. Paradise.

"_This one needs your help _…"

Cheza. Karasuke looked to Jaguara; the violet eyes staring through the mask at her were strikingly familiar, as were the stray strands of blonde. A memory swam into focus, piecing itself together amidst the shards of her childhood, but never given the time to form completely as the teen shook her head, annoyed.

"I really don't have time for this right now!"

As much as she loved her human form, the blonde wolf with the translucent blue eyes could manoeuvre much more easily around the Noble and her bumbling idiots of troops. Before she knew it, the teen was back running on human feet, clambering this way and that over fallen debris from the earlier explosion. A fall here and there caused a cut knee. And Cheza was being hurt aswell; that much she could tell from the pain in her ribs and the extra cuts gained from no trip or fall of her own account. Great, now there was a troop on his way up the hall towards her.

"Karasuke wait; we have the Flower Maiden and three civilians detained. We have orders to take them to Jaguara's Keep, but the truck's gonna stop halfway there for three days. Get to the halfway point at Orkham's dome city and we'll … eh … get raided? Just focus on getting your pack away from here."

The voice speaking from behind the troop's helmet was one she recognised. A smirk tugged at the corner of her mouth as she stopped and looked up at the troop, nodding her thanks before running on again and shouting her gratitude over her shoulder at the apparent enemy.

"Thanks!"

That'd been one of Claire's older brothers; the youngest one at twenty-four, Caleb was his name if she remembered correctly, but that wasn't really important at the moment. More clashes and growls were coming from the area of the detainment cells until finally the youth made it to the location. An armoured truck was just heading away through a rather large hole in the wall, with a white wolf hot on its tracks. If he followed he'd be shot.

"Kiba, wait!"

The light green eyes looked down with surprise as her hands pushed back against his chest, stopping the leader in his tracks; preventing him from following the vehicle and getting to Cheza. Those light green eyes were livid with anger when they glared down at her.

"Karasuke, what the hell?!"

"They're stopping at Orkham's; Claire's brothers are manning the truck - we get to the stopping point and we get Cheza back!"

Upon hearing this, the anger faded from his irises, replaced by relief as the dark-haired youth sighed heavily. Kiba then closed his eyes and leaned his forehead down, against hers, speaking in a low genuine tone.

"Are you okay?"

"Mmm hmm."

But while she said it and nodded slightly, Karasuke's hand had slipped the silver locket surreptitiously into her jeans pocket; better to save past mysteries for a later date. The somewhat tender scene was timely interrupted by an all too familiar voice and ill-placed pun-like wolf-whistle.

"Kiba, you _dog_ you!"

And as Hige walked over, laughing as he placed his hands, customarily, inside the pockets of his yellow hoody, Tsume surveyed the duo with one of his smug grins and a raised eyebrow; having noticed the overly-big jacket Karasuke was wearing, and the lack of said jacket on their pack's Alpha male.

"So what really happened while we were stuck in this joint, huh?"

The sound of a sword being drawn from its sheath saved the two from answering, but left the reunited pack with bigger problems in the form of an irate Noble woman. One look shared between the five wolves meant it was time to be out of this place. But one member only made it a few paces before she crashed to her knees; memories flashing though her mind like a distorted kaleidoscope of her past, and one shrill crying voice piercing through the confusion as the Flower Maiden screamed inside her head. Gasping, Karasuke clamped her hands to her ears, desperately trying to drown out Cheza's intense cries; surely the guys must hear her too.

"Ahh! Cheza please … stop; I can't … ahhh!"

Shaking her head form side to side and letting loose a cry of pain that paralleled the Flower Maiden's, Karasuke felt her grasp on consciousness slipping. All the while the sound of heeled boots got closer and closer as the world was momentarily cast askew at a sideways angle, and the teenager's head collided sharply with the ground.

"I'll do what I should have done fourteen years ago!"

The sword was raised high and aimed straight for the exposed neck of the ex-thief, but never connected with its intended target, for a white wolf had leaped for Jaguara's own exposed throat, missing my centimetres as the woman pulled back sharply. The protective growl that emanated from the wolf was chilling as he stood square in front of the limp girl.

"Tsume!"

"Got it!"

The white-haired of the group had already taken the initiative and held Karasuke in his arms, already half out into swirling snow, instructing Hige to lead the way with his nose; Kiba would catch up later, but the pup was still staring at where their leader was getting ready to square off with the human.

"Move it runt!"

"I was getting ready to!"

**A/n- Thanks again for taking the time to read my fic guys; you know it means the world to me!! XxxxxxxxxxxxxX**

**-Side Note- To prevent any confusion; the character "Kaori" is based on the maid/oracle kind of servant Darcia had in the actual anime. The dark clothes, dark hair and weird green eyes. She was never given a name in the anime, so I just expanded a little.**


	14. New City

**Author's Note:** Hey guys, because of a great review I got today, I decided I wanted to sit down and work on this fic today, and this was what I got, so I hope you like it!!

Btw- for anyone who wants placement; the location in this chapter is based around the city and pack of wolves in episodes 5 and 6. The abandoned city with the pack of wolves living like dogs and slaving for humans. Memorable moments to jog your memories; shirtless Kiba, and Tsume picks up Kiba and runs. XD (hope that helps!)

* * *

Yelling and the sound of a whip being cracked seemed to attack her ears. A few pained whines were heard before more cracking of the whip and human yells; machinery ground to halt and the yells grew louder and angrier. Grudgingly back in the world of consciousness, the young woman cracked open her eyes, blinking at the light of day. Strong arms held her frame close to a muscled chest.

Moving her head ever so slightly to the left, Karasuke let her eyes focus on the source of all the noise. They were in some sort of defunct train station, standing on an elevated platform, with a large group of people on the level below. This group of people were the ones shouting – shouting at a group of dogs that were harnessed to some kind of machinery, hauling it around. But the apparatus didn't move an inch as she looked down; one elderly dog had collapsed on the ground, its breathing shallow. One of the humans cracked his whip and raised it high, ready to strike the dying dog … only it wasn't a dog; it was a wolf.

The whip came down, hard; one pained yelp and the elderly life was over. She couldn't help it; the teenager started and looked away, turning her gaze into the muscled chest. Golden eyes immediately looked down at the sudden movement in his arms.

"C'mon guys, let's get out of here."

It was obvious by the tone of his voice that Tsume was disgusted with what they'd just seen; that was no way for a wolf to live, or die for that matter. Snow was falling again; nothing new there, but the wind whistled slightly, a noise she recognised; they were in a city of some sort.

Walking further away from that station, towards some abandoned dwellings they'd spotted upon entering this near-vacated city, Tsume looked back down to the teenager in his arms; she'd been out for almost four hours now, before coming to at the station.

"You okay, Karasuke?"

"Yeah … owww, no!"

Her voice was muffled against his chest, shaking her head pitifully and curling her toes. She _had_ been fine, until shaking her head and initiating a major headache. Grumbling audibly, the girl clutched her head in her hands, feeling a bump on the right side of her temple. Oh, why did her head always hurt so much? Why not a leg, or an arm instead?

"What hit me?"

"The ground, pretty hard I'll admit … damn, I'm hungry!"

All she could do was laugh; that was definitely Hige answering her and what made it worse was the growl her own stomach emitted at the thought of food, followed by Toboe's and Tsume's aswell. Come to think of it, the young woman couldn't remember when she'd last eaten … maybe it was at Claire's base, about two days ago, but she couldn't be sure for certain. Tsume's footsteps slowed on the pavement as they approached one of the old buildings; it had about three walls, and half a roof, but it was shelter.

"Can you walk?"

"Yup, thanks Tsume …"

Karasuke faltered on her feet a little as the normally-gruff thief lowered her back to the ground, keeping a steadying hand heavy on her shoulder. Thinking it better not to fall and hit her head yet again, Karasuke groaned and sat down on the ground, back against one of the remaining walls; at least if she did pass out again, there wasn't far to fall.

"Porky and I will go find some food, you and Toboe stay put."

The pup nodded, as did Karasuke, with a small voice in the back of her head pointing out how none of the guys had told her where Kiba was yet. He was probably already on Cheza's trail, following the truck to Orkham's city. But, maybe she wasn't in the truck. The young woman's mind was only coming together in fragments at the moment, remembering bits and pieces … oh God, she'd kissed him! And he'd kissed her back, or was that what she wanted to remember? Oh, how crap could her memory possibly be? With a rush of panic, the girl came to the realisation that she couldn't remember anything prior to waking up in Tsume's arms and watching the old wolf die; only mere snippets of fleeting moments.

"Ugh!"

"Karasuke, you alright?"

Toboe was suddenly sitting beside her, his hazel/amber eyes looking at her, full of worry. She'd already forgotten that Tsume had told him to stay aswell; was her memory that bad? What if she'd only dreamt of kissing Kiba whilst unconscious? Had they only just been jumped by Jaguara's troops after meeting Blue? What about the Keep and the weeks spent alone with Kiba? It was all a lie. With want of a better action, the teen screwed her eyes shut and began to rock back a forth a little; pictures were starting to become a little clearer in her mind. Double doors and a baby's silver rattle. A yellowed picture and the shell of a mother. Ruse and Mama … Kaori and the locket. The locket!

With a slight gasp of remembrance, Karasuke stopped rocking and surreptitiously traced the back pocket of her jeans with her right hand; it was there! And it was only as she breathed a sigh of relief, that the teenager realised what she was wearing; Kiba's jacket … so, maybe it hadn't been imagined.

"I … I'm fine, Toboe."

She looked sideways at the youngest of their pack and flashed a smile, genuinely happy of the silver locket in her possession. Thoughts returning to more immediate problems, the girl noticed the pup shivering and stood up, having taken notice of the dry leaves and twigs lying about. It was getting dark outside, the day drawing into dusk as the snow fell a little heavier than earlier.

"Toboe, I need you to find me two stones, but one has to be a kinda grey colour and sharp at the edges, kay?"

The boy immediately nodded his head and stood up, glad to be able to help in some aspect. Smiling happily, the youth exited the meagre dwelling and began looking for the needed stones. Throwing her hair over one shoulder, Karasuke gathered up some old fragments of bricks that must have fallen from the roof at some time, shaping them in a circle in the centre of the old room. The twigs and leaves were next to be gathered up and placed inside the makeshift circle, finding a few larger pieces of wood outside, the teenager placed them to the side for use later on.

* * *

It was a while before Toboe returned with a stone in each hand, looking unsure as he placed them on the ground by her and sat down, curious. Karasuke looked to the stones and smiled widely; one was a grey colour and the side was slate-thin and sharp, the other was just a normal stone. She had doubted their chances of finding a flint stone around these parts, but the pup had done it.

"Toboe, you're brilliant, you know that?!"

The youngster laughed as Karasuke threw her arms around his thin neck, obviously happy with his find. Laughing along with her, the pup suddenly felt guilty about his thoughts back in the holding cell at Darcia's. He'd blamed her for invading the pack and seemingly stealing the others from him, but the truth was that she had her own problems to deal with; he'd seen the doubt in her emerald eyes as she'd rocked back and forth, and could have sworn that, for the fleetest of seconds, she hadn't even recognised him.

One strike; a few sparks and a mumbled swear.

Two strikes; a few more sparks and little smouldering.

Three strikes and the sparks caught the twigs and leaves, building up enough to place the heavier pieces of wood on the flames. They had fire and heat, and it felt good! Smiling proudly as she slipped the flint stone into an empty pocket, Karasuke rubbed her hands together and held them close to the flames. A noise at the collapsed doorway of the old dwelling made both her and Toboe look around, but it wasn't their guys who stood there; three young men, or more exactly, three young wolves watched them amusedly.

"Whattya know, a new girl round these parts?"

"Gets kinda old when Cole's the only one around, and she's Zari's gal."

Karasuke was on her feet, instinctively standing in front of Toboe. The three advanced from the old doorway and started a circling regime, as though moving in for the kill. God she hoped they only came to inspect the newcomers and piss off again, but that hope was soon laid to rest by the admiring look in the young males' eyes as they circled.

"What's your name, baby doll?"

"None of your business now leave!"

She couldn't help but grimace as the seemingly leader of the trio referred to her as such; what kind of name was that? Karasuke gulped slightly as she extended a hand towards the place where a door should have been and stood strong, or at least tried to. Toboe was nervous behind her and she was getting edgy aswell. The old gang in Orkham's city had been cool because she'd known the guys there; the same with the guys in the pack, but these were strangers and didn't seem all that interested in friendship at the moment.

"Don't be like that, baby doll; you're all alone here with the puppy; I just want to be your companion for a little, that's all."

"Back off!"

One step too close for comfort, and she'd forcibly shoved the youth in the chest, causing him to back-track a few steps away. He was the youngest of them, probably about the same age as herself, but the other two were mid to late twenties. The admiration in his eyes deftly faded to annoyance as he started forward again, this time with the others catching hold of Toboe as the younger one advanced further. Not knowing what to do, Karasuke took equal steps backwards, retreating as fast as he approached. The flames danced on the darkening walls and allowed for her to see the smile on the male's face. Before she knew it, the wall was at her back; nowhere to retreat to … hands on her hips, territorial and wanting, lusting. Running out of options, the teenager reverted to something Claire had taught her years ago; the spit hit him straight in the eye. Her left leg rose up at a savage pace, aimed for right between his two, but was prevented as he took one small step back out of her range. Had it been a human, the youth would have retreated a step or two to wipe the saliva from his vision, but this was a wolf and instinct had taken hold.

"Karasuke!"

There were two Toboes being held by four men as another two loomed over her. Confused as her vision swam in and out of focus, the seventeen-year-old blinked until only one Toboe looked on in fright, held by two males, and the same guy as before had her pinned against the wall. Her jaw ached and was already swollen from the punch; he did no appreciate the attempt at escape.

"Karasuke, hmmm? Pretty name, baby doll."

Before she could formulate a snappy retort, abrasive, chapped lips crashed into hers as one hand held both of hers above her head by the wrists, the other roaming its way under Kiba's jacket and down her side. One of his legs forced its way between hers and the girl had to fight back vomit as she could have sworn she felt a bulge in his groin area pressing against her inner thigh.

"Hands off of her!"

His uncaring lips were suddenly and mercifully removed as someone yanked the strange youth off of her and threw him a few feet away, a furious voice being heard as strong arms caught her frame, her feet giving way beneath her, with shock taking hold. Karasuke found her vision blurry again, but not because of a punch this time; because she was crying. Her eyes darted around their shelter; Tsume and Hige had the other two wolves by their throats as the strangers' leader made a hasty exit, his nose spurting blood. The other two soon followed, each marred with crimson spilling from some newly-delivered wound.

If Tsume and Hige had been the ones to deal with those two, then who had saved her? The blurry vision semi-focused on the face in front of her; light green eyes and dark, messy brown hair.

"Kiba, you're okay!"

Whether she had noticed it or not, Karasuke had convinced herself of the worst case scenario when he'd been missing for so long, but here he was, saving her yet again, and all she could do was wrap her arms tightly around his strong neck in relief and gratitude.

"Are you okay?"

"What about Toboe, where is he? They had him caught and-"

Strong arms shook her firmly as the worried irises hardened in intensity. Kiba placed his face an inch or two from hers, hands cupping her face to make her stare at him and get the question across.

"Toboe is fine. Are you?"

He removed his right hand from her swollen left jaw line as she shook her head weakly, a few tears breaking free.

"No …"

This time it was him to hug her, not tightly or in relief as she had, but in protection. He'd only just followed their scents to this city and run into Tsume and Hige out hunting. Thinking it better to help them with finding food, Kiba had aided in the capture of two large hares, and a decently-sized rabbit. The three had been walking back when they'd heard Toboe shouting Karasuke's name. They'd made it to the old dwelling to find the three invaders.

"Well, we found food if it helps?"

Karasuke couldn't help but laugh into Kiba's chest as she heard Hige's helpless voice. Truth was he wanted the food, a fact that caused all five of them to laugh.

**A/n- Please let me know what you thought, guys! And again; thansk a million for taking the time to read my fic, it means the wold to me!! XxxxxxxxxxX**


End file.
